Sold On Revenge
by Malin Halibell
Summary: After Bella is rescued, she comes home to find that Edward's been taken, the Cullen's are frantically searching for him, and she must try to recover from the traumatic events she's been put though. Will they be able to find Edward before it's too late? No matter what happens, Bella wants one thing... revenge. Sequel to Sold Into Love.
1. Chapter 1

**This is the sequel to Sold Into Love! You really need to read Sold Into Love to understand this at all.**

**Sorry, this is not beta'd.**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN Twilight. **

* * *

_**One month later.**_

**BPOV**

I was sitting on the couch with Maggie, going through security footage that Aro had emailed to us.

We still hadn't found Edward.

There would be security footage of him here and there, always tied up and blindfolded, being led into a building by a group of people, but whenever everyone would get to the places to find him, there was no sign that anyone had been there for weeks.

It was frustrating and I'd had my fair share of breakdowns over it, but someone always helped me calm down and pull myself back together.

I hated it in the beginning, everyone always treated me with kid gloves, and I'd often snap at them. But after Carlisle suggested I think about a form of therapy, I relented and asked him what he had in mind.

He told me that I obviously needed to talk about what had happened, get it all off my chest. He called in an old colleague and friend from back when he worked as a doctor.

Leah Clearwater was about Esme's age and specialized in rape and abuse therapy for women. Carlisle said she was the best in her field of work and he had paid for her to come out to Greece to be my personal therapist. I threw a fit over that.

At first, I didn't like her at all. Part of it was because I just didn't want to talk about what happened. We went through two sessions of me doing nothing but sitting on the couch with my arms folded and silently wishing a hole would open up in the ground and swallow one of us up.

Of course that never happened.

She was patient though, never pressing me to talk about it.

Into the fifth session, I walked into the living room, ready for another hour of sulking, when I saw that she was holding a little kitten. I didn't know what to think about it.

Leah called it animal therapy.

I could talk about my problems without actually have the pressure of telling them to someone who could talk back, it could just be there for me. No judgment, pressure, or fear. And after I was comfortable enough saying it out loud, I could talk about it in therapy where Leah could help me actually deal with my issues.

At first, I thought she needed some therapy herself, suggesting I talk to a freaking cat. But as a few days passed and I warmed up to the cute little kitten, I did find myself talking to him. Just absentmindedly rambling about something that frustrated me, or made me nervous or upset.

He was a little orange tabby cat, nothing special, but I liked that about him. On the third day, I decided to name him Cheese, noting that his fur was about the same color as cheddar cheese.

I loved him.

He'd sleep with me in bed, curling up on the pillow next to my head. And he always followed me around the house. It was funny to watch him try to go down the stairs, he was so little he had to take one stair at a time and was wobbly. Most of the time I just picked him up and carried him around with me. Emmett would see me and tease me about Cheese not being able to remember how to walk if I didn't put him down once and a while.

Alice had gone a little crazy with the cat toys, buying all different kinds of plastic balls, little toy mice, feathers, and strings. She even bought one of those six foot high, multi-level cat house things. I thought it was way over the top and asked her to take it back, since he didn't even go near the thing, but she insisted that we keep it, just in case he'd grow into it. I sighed and rolled my eyes, but agreed, if it was put in another room that wasn't being used. I didn't want it to take up space in the living room or something when it was never used.

Once everything was settled, I decided to focus on my therapy. So every night before I went to sleep, I made a habit out of venting about everything that had happened that day, as well as touching on more sensitive subjects.

Cheese would look up at me and meow, like he was telling me he was listening, and curl up in my lap and purr as I petted him and talked.

Then the next day when I had a session with Leah, I found it a little easier to say them to her. She actually helped me more than I thought she could.

Emotionally, I was making some progress, but physically... I wasn't too thrilled.

Carlisle said that a better part of the cuts on my left arm would most likely scar. They had been too deep and left untreated too long for them to heal fully without scarring. My fever had thankfully broken a few days after I was rescued and there was no damage there. After a couple of weeks, my bruises had gone away and I was walking better. I'd also asked him, embarrassed and in tears, if there was a way he could test me for an STD.

He had acted professionally, saying that he could take me into the nearest hospital to do a couple tests. He had an old friend he'd gone to medical school with that worked at the hospital and he let Carlisle do the tests.

It turned out I didn't have anything, thank God. It looked like Alistair was cleaner than I thought he'd be. Who knew that a drug lord/kidnapper/rapist would be worried about STD's too.

No matter how much therapy I went through, I was still self-conscious about the whole thing and I'd flinch whenever someone moved too fast, especially a man, but I was getting better. The first time I flinched away from Emmett, it was like I broke his heart or something. He berated himself so much that Rose had to sit him down and explain that it wasn't his fault, that I wasn't really afraid of him, it was just a knee jerk reaction from what had happened to me.

Em had made it up for me by making me breakfast in bed the next morning; Belgian waffles with lots of whipped cream and strawberries, bacon and orange juice. I felt bad that I had made him feel bad, I should have known better; Emmett would never hurt me, but I just couldn't help it. I explained that to him and he said he understood, and that he was stupid for doing anything that might scare me in the first place.

Esme was going mother overload on me. At first, I'd felt uncomfortable around her. I was pretty much the reason that her son was missing. Shouldn't she hate me or resent me?

Not in her mind.

She'd check on me various times throughout the day, volunteering to do things for me; like make me something to eat, run me a bath, or even do my laundry. It was overwhelming sometimes. But I realized that it was just her way of helping me and keeping herself busy at the same time.

Esme had also dealt with Charlie and Renee on the phone. They about had a heart attack over the whole thing. They'd been gathering together all the money they could; savings, retirement funds, loans, everything. But even with that all together, they'd only gotten about five million dollars.

They both insisted that I come home, but after an hour of arguments with me and reassurances from Carlisle and Esme that they would take care of me, they agreed to let me stay. But I had to call one of them every other day. It got really annoying when I forgot our scheduled time by ten minutes and Renee was panicking, ready to call in the FBI.

There was also the little problem of how they thought I was still on my class trip. That took a little bit of explaining.

Charlie wasn't happy at all when I said I'd met a man while in Brazil - I left out exactly _how_ I met him - and started going all overprotective papa-bear on me. I put my foot down, I was an adult damn it and I could take care of myself. I had survived being kidnapped, tortured, and raped, I think I could pick my boyfriend.

With Renee, after the initial shock wore off, she just asked me how cute he was. I'd huffed and mumbled a half-ass reply of him being the hottest, nicest, most caring man I'd ever met and quickly got off the phone.

"Maybe we're missing something." Maggie muttered from next to me. Her eyebrows were drawn together as she thought.

"What though? There's no pattern, nothing that stands out, just... nothing!" I said, frustrated.

I wanted to find Edward with every fiber in my being. It was what I lived for, why I got out of bed in the morning and went on with my life, instead of curling up in the fetal position in bed everyday and drowning in my misery.

My breath would hitch and tears would form in my eyes every time I watched video footage of him being dragged into a building, tied up and beaten, and then dragged back out a few hours later looking even worse.

"Hmmm..." Maggie mumbled, writing something down on her notepad with a look of intense concentration on her face.

Maggie and I had actually become good friends. I was a little timid around her for a while, I'd only just met her, and her sister had helped keep me locked up, made me do drugs and turned a blind eye when her boyfriend raped me. But I soon learned that Maggie was nothing like Bree.

She was very kind and fun to be around when she was in a good mood, but tough and didn't take anything from anyone. She was twenty years old and like me, had been in college. She'd been in the University of Oxford in England when Jasper had called her and asked for her help. And I felt both immensely grateful to her and guilty that she had taken a semester off to help me and the Cullen's.

Although, I felt a little threatened when one night Rosalie told me that she used to have a crush on Edward. I was suspicious that she was only helping because she wanted another chance with Edward, which had led to a what Emmett referred to as a 'mini cat-fight'. We'd had a good shouting match about it, but once we had calmed down, Esme and Carlisle made us sit down and talk about it.

Maggie admitted to still having a bit of a crush on Edward, but it was nothing serious anymore. She could see how much I love him and how much he seemed to love me, and wouldn't dream of trying to get in-between us.

I was still apprehensive, but warmed back up to her quick enough.

She'd done everything she could to help and I felt silly for being so upset about it. We'd taken to going over the surveillance footage together to try to find any patterns or consistencies that would help us predict where they might take Edward next. So far, we'd found nothing useful.

"Look at the time stamp." Maggie told me, pointing at the little numbers that showed the date and time the video was taken in the bottom right corner.

"Yeah... it says 1:14am." I read off.

"It's always after midnight, but we already figured that bit out. And they always do this every six days. So there's that." She said.

"Yes, we have a pattern there, but it won't help us if we can't figure out where they'll be taking him next. We need to find a pattern in the buildings, even the towns!" I exclaimed, tugging on a piece of my hair.

"Most of them have been old brick buildings, or warehouses, but there's dozens, even hundreds of those kinds of buildings scattered throughout the entire country. We can't put someone at every old building and warehouse in the country, it's impossible." She huffed, sounding frustrated as well.

"What about the people that own these buildings?" I asked.

"There are a lot of different people and we haven't been able to find a common denominator." Maggie said.

"Let me see the list." I said.

A week or so ago, we'd created a list of people that owned the buildings we'd seen Edward being forced into.

Maggie handed it to me wordlessly and I took a closer look at it. There were no common names, no connections between anyone, nothing. It was like they really were being completely random.

My eyes scanned down the list until they stopped on one name. For some reason, it caught my attention. It was the second to last name on the list, so it must be one of the owners of the building we were looking at now.

Jim Houston.

It seemed like a normal, everyday name. But there was something about it that screamed for me to look at it.

"Maggie... What do we have on this Jim Houston?" I asked slowly.

"Nothing yet, Aro's guy is still doing research on him." She answered.

"Lunch!" Esme's voice rang through the house.

"Uh oh." Maggie muttered.

I snickered, but was a little worried myself. Whenever Esme made lunch, she tended to go overboard with it. Carlisle said it was just her mothering instinct kicking into high gear, but I was worried I was going to get fat with all the food getting shoved down my throat. I wasn't sure how Edward would take me gaining a few extra pounds because of his overzealous cooking machine of a mom.

Esme came strutting out of the kitchen, carrying a tray full of food for me and Maggie.

"I did what you asked and just made grilled cheese sandwiches... but I threw in some tomato soup to go with it. You just can't have grilled cheese sandwiches without it." She said, setting the tray down on the table.

"Thank you, Esme." I said, smiling at her. I'd tried getting her to make simpler things for lunch, much to everyone's agreement. When we had to sit down for a five course meal for lunch yesterday, someone had to put their foot down.

"Why don't you girls take a break?" Esme suggested.

"We can't. I think I found something, but we don't have all the information yet." I said.

"What did you find?" Esme asked, a desperate edge to her voice. She wanted Edward back just as much as I did.

"The name of the man that owns this last building... there's something about it I can't shake." I told her. "Does the name 'Jim Houston' mean anything to you?" I asked.

She thought about it, tapping her foot on the hardwood floor.

"No, it doesn't seem familiar, but you're right... there's something there about it." She said slowly.

The doorbell rang out and Esme went to get it.

We'd moved to another one of the Cullen's houses, still in Greece. The house was beautiful, kind of like a mix between a mansion and log cabin; the size of a mansion, and done in all wood and several large glass windows over looking the forest we were in the middle of.

The house was pretty much in the middle of nowhere, and no one except the Cullen's and a few family friends know where it is, so Carlisle and Jasper had deemed this the safest place we could be.

Esme came back, with Benjamin trailing behind her.

Benjamin was Aro's twenty-four year old nephew from his wife's side, and he pretty much knew everything about computers. He was the one that had done all the technical stuff when the Cullen's were trying to get me away from Alistair, and 'borrowing' - his word - the security footage of Edward.

Though he didn't usually come over. He preferred to work in his little office or whatever it was.

"Hi Maggie." He greeted her shyly, clearing his throat.

It was so freaking cute.

Benjamin was kinda _nerdy_. And I don't mean that in an offensive way. It was actually really adorable. He was just extremely shy, especially around girls, he had these glasses that would always fall down his nose, his light brown hair was fairly messy on top of his head and he always carried around his laptop. He was much more comfortable in front of that laptop than he was talking to someone.

It was worse when it came to Maggie. Benjamin always stuttered or turned red when she was even in the same room. It was so obvious he had a crush on her.

"Hi." She greeted him back, smiling.

I just shook my head and bit into my sandwich.

"I uh, I found out some stuff about the owners of the latest building." Benjamin said after he recovered from Maggie.

He pulled his laptop out of his bag and sat down in one of the chairs.

"It's really a lot of the same stuff, but there was something that raised a red flag." He said as he typed. "One of the names is tied to another name from the second building; Victoria Bears."

"How?" I asked.

"The names are on other paperwork together. It even says they rented an apartment together back in America." He said. "I've been doing some digging and, it took me a while, but I found pictures of these two. Do you recognize either of them?" He asked me, turning his computer around so I could see.

I nearly had a heart attack when I saw James Hunter's face looking back at me.

"T-That's... James." I muttered, subconsciously backing away into the couch.

Esme gasped. "Are you sure Bella?"

I nodded. "I'm sure. I'd recognize him anywhere."

There was no mistaking him; I'd only seen him once, but his face was pretty much burned into my mind.

"And this Victoria chick is connected to a few other owners that I've found so far. They've worked together before on something or another. I don't know why I didn't find it before... I guess we just needed that Joh- James guy to put it together." By now, he was just hunched over his laptop, typing away and mumbling.

Now I get why the name stuck with me. The initials were the same... Jim Houston... James Hunter. And 'Jim' was a common nickname for James. In the back of my mind, I knew there was something about it, but it wasn't so obvious that I could get it right away.

"I think we just found our connection." Maggie said softly.

Yes... We did find our connection. Now hopefully, it would help us get to Edward. Before it was too late.

* * *

**Go get your man, Bella!**

**As you can tell, Bella is taking steps to recover. The process is far from over, though. **

**You can find me on Facebook under Malin Halibell. Friend me if you want, just tell me you're a reader. **

**Please hit that little button down there and tell me what you think. **


	2. Chapter 2

**This is not beta'd. So all mistakes are mine and there's probably a few of them.**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN Twilight! I'm not in on that. Although, I wouldn't mind being in the middle of an Edward and Tate (American Horror Story) sandwich. Just sayin'. If you're looking for ideas on what to get me for Christmas...**

* * *

**BPOV**

"No, you're not going." Jasper told me for the hundredth time.

"You said I could help you find him!" I shouted.

"Yes I did, and you _have_ helped us find him. I never said that you could get in the middle of what's probably going to turn into a battle." He said, tucking a gun into the waistband of his jeans.

I growled in frustration and stomped out of the room, heading for my own.

After we had figured out the connection, Benjamin had been able to narrow down one of the next possible buildings down to three choices.

Jasper had made some calls to people I don't even want to know and made plans for a few of them at each building, including at least one member of the Cullen family with them. Everyone was going except me, Alice and Esme.

I tried to make my argument that Maggie and Rose get to go with everyone, so I wanted to go too. But he was adamant about not letting me even leave the house.

I just couldn't get it out of my mind that Edward might be in one of those buildings. And Jasper wanted me to just sit around the house and put my feet up and eat bon-bons or something?

Ugh!

There was another problem, but this one was a bit more personal. I had sat for days, weeks, thinking about when we did rescue Edward... would he still even want me? He's been put through hell for over a month because of me, that's got to take some points off the love factor. And then there's a matter of... well... of me having been raped.

Once he finds out about that, he'll probably never want to touch me again.

I had cried myself to sleep many times thinking about that.

I felt dirty and damaged... uncomfortable in my own skin. I'd scrubbed myself raw every time I took a shower, trying to wash the dirty feeling away, but it never worked.

How would he react when I tell him? Do I even want to tell him? I should, he'll find out sooner or later, from me or someone else.

"Bella!" Jasper called through my closed door. "I don't want you to get hurt! I know it's hard for you to just sit here, but you can't do anything else."

I sighed. On one hand, I understood his point; if there was any trouble, I'd pretty much be an open target. But on the other hand, I didn't necessarily want to be apart of the action, I'd be happy with waiting in the car. Anything other than just sitting here and waiting on pins and needles.

I got up from my bed, disrupting Cheese since I'd been petting him for the past five minutes, and opened the door for Jasper.

"I understand, but I can't stand sitting around while Edward's out there, hurt, and I can do something about it." I explained.

"I'm sorry." He whispered.

"Can't I just sit in the car or something?" I pleaded.

Jasper huffed and rubbed a hand over his face.

"No. You're staying here and that's final. We'll call when we have Edward." He said, practically dismissing me and walking away.

I stared opened mouthed after him, not believing that he had just given me an order like that.

An idea popped into my head.

Quickly putting my sneakers on, I said goodbye to Cheese, giving him one last chin scratch, and tip-toed out of my room. Before going down the stairs, I looked over the railing to make sure no one was around to see me. I could hear Esme and Alice in the kitchen, but no one was in the living room. So I made my way quietly down the stairs and practically speed walked the rest of the way to the garage.

They were going to take three cars; all of them black SUV's, I just needed to pick which one I wanted to hide in. Each one was going to a different building and there was no way of telling which of them would end up at the building Edward was at.

I winged it and jumped into the back of the middle one, hiding myself the best I could with a blanket that was mixed in with some medical supplies that they were bringing, just in case Edward needed treatment right away.

I laid as still as I could, waiting with bated breath until I finally heard the door swing open, followed by Carlisle and Esme's voices.

"Jasper said she was upset, she's still up in her room and probably wants to be left alone." Carlisle said.

Were they talking about me?

"I know, but I still worry about her. She shouldn't be up in her room all alone during a time like this. It makes my heart hurt to see that little angel sulk up in her room, refusing any kind of comfort." Esme fretted.

"She just needs some time by herself. Give her a little while." Carlisle assured her.

"You're right, I guess." She conceded. "But you be careful! All of you! Call the second you get our son safe."

"I'm always careful darling." Carlisle said. I could hear the confidence in his voice, reminding me very much of Edward.

"Let's go!" Emmett's voice echoed through the garage.

The car door opened up and I held my breath, keeping perfectly still.

"We ready babe?" Emmett asked, I assumed he was talking to Rose. I'd be concerned if he was talking to Maggie... or Jasper.

"Yes." Rose's voice replied seriously.

"Cheer up babe, this is gonna be fun!" Emmett exclaimed as one of them started up the car. I couldn't tell who was driving.

"Emmett, this is not a happy occasion." Rose grumbled.

"Okay, maybe not the happiest occasion, but we are going to save my little brother's ass. So there's that. And I will be able to forever hold it over his head that I saved his sissy ass." Emmett chuckled.

I heard Rose sigh and I could imagine her rolling her eyes.

"Hey Belly Bee, wanna come up where it's more comfortable?" Emmett called out, making me stop breathing and my eyes widen.

_How...?_

I slowly pushed the blanket off me and sat up, my mind still trying to figure out how the hell he knew.

I met Rosalie's eyes in the rear-view mirror and she quirked a blonde eyebrow at me, but didn't say anything, just kept on driving.

"How did you know?" I asked Emmett.

"Well, I went by your room and you weren't there, and you weren't with Esme and Alice either. Up in your room, I noticed that your shoes were missing and you don't usually wear them around the house. It honestly wasn't that hard to figure out. And usually the blanket doesn't have curly brown hair sticking out of it." He said, smiling at the last part.

_Shit!_ _I forgot to check my hair wasn't sticking out!_

"Are you going to take me back?" I asked quietly.

"Hmmm... I don't think so. What do you think, Rosie?" He asked.

Rose glanced at me in the rear-view mirror again and I took the chance to give her my best puppy-dog eyes.

"I swear, you're just as bad as Emmett." She grumbled playfully.

"Does that mean I can-?"

"There will be rules!" She interrupted me. "You are to stay hidden under that blanket, in this car, at all times. I'm going to be staying in here anyway because we need to be able to get out quickly. And that's even if we are the one's to find him. We might be going to the wrong building, I don't know."

"I'll stay in the car." I promised.

I climbed into the back seat, laying down across it, and didn't say anything else. The drive was quiet, as we got closer and closer, I could feel the tension and anxiety rising and rising. Even Emmett was quiet and tense.

I just laid there, thinking about how I was going to handle this. What kind of condition will Edward be in? Would he be so bad he'd need to be taken to a hospital? Would he even want to see me? I was mentally preparing myself for the moment he'd tell me to go home because he didn't want anything to do with me.

Unfortunately, no sort of preparation could make me ready for my heart to break if he uttered those words.

"We're here." Rose muttered.

I carefully climbed back to where I had been, hiding under the blanket and making sure to tuck all my hair in.

A few seconds later, Rose slowly eased the car into a stop.

"Shit." I heard Emmett hiss.

"What?" I couldn't help but ask quietly.

"There are other cars here... they're not any of ours." He responded.

I sucked in a breath and the blood drained from my face.

_That means... maybe... Edward..._

"Wish me luck." Emmett said and I could hear him kiss Rose before opening the car door and disappearing.

I was silent for a total of about ten seconds before I couldn't resist anymore.

"What's going on?" I asked Rose.

"Calm down. Emmett's still outside talking to the other guys." She told me.

The _other guys_ she was referring to were some of the Cullen's and Aro's men. The plan was to have about ten to fifteen people in each group. Jasper had planned it out well.

"Okay, now they're going in." She said.

I was so freaking nervous I felt like I was about to throw up all over the car. All Rose and I could do was wait, and I wasn't so sure this was much better than just staying home.

"How long has it been?" I asked after a while of nothing.

"Six minutes." She said nervously.

"How long should something like this take?" I asked.

"Depends. They've got to locate Edward within the building; that could take a while, there's so many rooms and floors. Then they've got to ummm... take care of everyone. So really it could take anywhere from a few minutes to a half hour." She told me.

I sighed and gnawed on my poor lip.

"Rose..." I started. "What if... what if he doesn't want me anymore." I whispered my fear to her.

"What do you mean?" She asked sharply.

"I'm afraid he won't want me because either of this whole situation, or when he founds out what Alistair did-"

"I'm gonna stop you right there sweetie." Rose interrupted. "First of all, if he does say that he doesn't want to be with you, we'll know he has brain damage. Second; he is not going to think any less of you because that bastard hurt you. It'll be okay, Bella."

I hoped she was right.

"Shit!" Rose exclaimed suddenly. I had to resist sitting up and looking.

"What?" I asked, panicking at her tone.

Before she could say anything, one of the doors was opened and I could hear Emmett and someone else talking hurriedly.

"Shit, shit, shit... we need to stop the bleeding." A man said.

_That's it, I'm not hiding anymore._

I sat up, throwing the blanket off me and bent over the backseat to see what was happening.

Edward was laying down in the seat, looking... horrible. His face was a bruised, bloody and swollen mess. His lips were busted open is several places, along with his eyebrows. Bruises littered his face from forehead to jaw, and his hair was matted with blood.

And that was just from the neck up.

His shirt was dirty and torn up, blood staining it. And it was obvious he'd been shot in his stomach, which Emmett was currently holding a towel to, but blood was still pouring out.

How could he have gotten like this? He was my strong, invincible Edward. My Edward that laughed at playing a game of Russian Roulette with a mob boss, that killed people before, that no one could touch.

It didn't make sense.

I let out a loud gasp, making Emmett's head snap up to me.

"Fuck. Ummm... okay, as long as you're not hiding anymore, help!" He said loudly.

Without a second thought, I jumped over the seat, kneeling by Edward's head.

"What should I do?" I asked, my panicked hands fluttering over him.

"Hold this, put all the pressure you can on it." He ordered, gesturing to the towel he was holding against Edward's stomach.

I reached across Edward, taking over while Emmett reached over the seat to dig through the medical supplies.

"What happened?" I asked.

"When got into the room he was in... one of those bastards shot him." Emmett panted out. "We were lucky he didn't aim for Edward's head."

I let out a sob at the thought and bent my head, looking down at his face.

"Edward, please don't die... please. We need you... _I_ need you. I love you."

* * *

**Edward! They found him! But he's in horrible condition. Poor Edward, let me hug you! **

**You can find me on Facebook under Malin Halibell. Friend me if you want, just say you're a reader. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN Twilight. **

* * *

**BPOV**

Everything was a big, panicked, blur.

At first, Rose had driven back to the house where Carlisle was waiting, having beaten us back. But the second he saw Edward, he shook his head and told her to keep driving to the hospital.

That made me start to really freak out.

So Rose backed out of the driveway without a word to Carlisle and drove as fast as she could to the hospital, me and Emmett still in the back, trying to stop Edward's gunshot wound from bleeding.

He was unconscious and I had to check his breathing and pulse repeatedly to make sure he was still alive. I was crying, but trying to keep myself together as much as I could. My focus was on Edward. This wasn't about me. This was about keeping him alive.

The tires squealed to a stop as Rose pulled into the emergency entrance to the hospital. And the next thing I know, I'm being pulled backwards out of the car by someone, probably doctors or nurses trying to get to Edward, and I let them. Though I did flinch away and whimper, trying to fight down my fears and memories.

"Leave her alone! She's not hurt, it's just him." Rose's voice called, pulling me away from a doctor.

I glanced down at my hands and saw how they would think I needed medical help too. My hands and arms were covered in blood, the rest of me probably looked like shit, too.

Rose pulled me around the car and into the hospital. Ahead of us was Edward on a gurney, with a bunch of doctors and nurses around him, cutting open his clothes while they wheeled him through the hospital, yelling a bunch of medical terms to each other as they went.

Emmett was just standing there, his bloody hands on his hips and breathing heavily as he watch them take Edward away.

"Bella, let's go wash all this off." Rose whispered, gesturing to the blood covering my hands and arms.

I walked in almost a trance with her to a restroom, letting her wrap her arm around my waist and guide me.

My hands were trembling as she turned on the water at a sink, then grabbed my wrists gently, putting them under the water. I watched as the water went from clear, to pink, to red, washing off my hands and down the drain.

Rose took some paper towels and started lightly scrubbing, making sure to get it all off.

"I'm sure he'll be okay, sweetie. Edward's strong, he's a fighter. We just have to let the doctors do their work." She said soothingly to me.

I couldn't say anything, every word I tried to force out got stuck in my throat.

Eventually, all the blood was scrubbed off my hands and we had to go back to the waiting room.

The entire family had arrived and was now sitting in chairs, Esme with an arm around Alice, Jasper was pacing the floor with Emmett, and Maggie was just sitting there, biting her nails - a nervous habit I'd found out she had. I didn't see Carlisle though, so I looked around further and saw him near the front desk talking to a doctor.

The second Esme laid eyes on me, she jumped up and dashed across the room, practically smothering me in her arms.

"Oh I was so worried!" She cried into my hair.

I looked over her shoulder at Jasper, who was glaring at me, his arms crossed across his chest.

_Uh oh._

"I'm sorry Esme." I apologized sincerely. I didn't mean for her to worry, that's the last thing I wanted.

"Bella, can I talk to you for a minute?" Jasper asked.

_No._ _'Cause I know you're going to yell at me._

"Sure." I muttered, extracting myself from Esme's arms and slowing walking over to Jasper.

He lead me away from the waiting room, stopping in a nearly empty hallway, a couple nurses walking around here and there.

"What the hell was that?" He asked. I could hear the anger in his voice that he was trying to hide.

"What was what?" I asked, playing dumb.

"Bella... do not play with me." Jasper warned.

"Sorry father." I mumbled.

"Damn it Bella! Do you not understand that you could have been hurt? That you could have died? Edward might not have been the only person to get shot tonight!" He yelled, his voice getting louder and louder as he went.

He was so close to me, maybe a foot away, and when he suddenly brought his hand up, I flinched away, my back hitting the wall, and saw an immediate flash of guilt and sadness wash over his face.

"Oh sugar, no." He whispered. "I'm sor-"

I startled even more when Jasper was flung into the wall beside me, a few feet away. Emmett had him by his shirt, pinned up against the wall.

"If you _ever_ raise your voice at her again, I will end you." Emmett growled into his face.

"Emmett stop it!" Alice yelled.

Emmett held onto Jasper's shirt for a few seconds longer before letting him go.

Alice rushed to Jasper's side, making sure he was alright. I wasn't expecting her to swing her hand across his cheek, though.

"Jasper Hale! If you ever do that again, you'll have to answer to _me_ instead of Emmett! I thought you were raised better than that! Raising your voice at a scared girl... I hope you find the couch comfortable, because that's where you'll be sleeping tonight." Alice ranted at him, her tiny body shaking in her own anger at him.

I swear Jasper looked more scared of Alice than he did of Emmett.

"What is going on over here?" Carlisle asked, walking over to us.

"It's nothing." Jasper muttered, his head down.

"Well whatever it is, you need to remember that you are in a hospital. There is to be no shouting and fighting. For God sake, you're all adults, act like it." He said, giving each and everyone of us the dad glare.

There was a chorus of _sorrys_ before everyone fell silent.

"Now that we're done with this set of dramatics, I'd like to move onto another." Carlisle said. "I've just finished talking to one of Edward's doctors. They've still got him in surgery, but the doctor said the odds look fairly good. So far, there is some internal bleeding from the shot, but no arteries were hit, that's good. He's got three broken ribs, his left shoulder was dislocated and there are deep bruising and the cuts on his face will need some stitches. The main concern is of course the bullet and they've got to reset his shoulder. Hopefully if they get the internal bleeding under control, he'll pull through."

My breathing got shallower and shallower as he listed off all of Edward's injuries. Thank God I was already leaning against a wall, or I would have fallen to the floor.

I heard Esme gasp and Carlisle say something to her.

"Bella..." Jasper's smooth voice whispered to me timidly.

"If it had been Alice, what would you have done?" I spat at him before going back into the waiting room.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

We waited for three hours.

I swear they were the longest three hours of my life.

As every minute ticked by, I wondered if it would be the minute when the doctor would either walk out with a smile on his face, telling all of us that Edward was perfect and he would make a full recovery, or come out with a sorry expression, telling us that Edward wouldn't make it.

I did everything from pacing around to falling asleep in the chair for twenty minutes. I couldn't sleep for much longer than that. Jasper hadn't talked to me, but I caught him giving me guilty and sorry looks every time I'd look over at him. I ignored them, telling myself I didn't have the patience to deal with Jasper right now.

Finally the doctor came out.

I tried to read the expression on his face, but it seemed neutral. Was that good or bad?

"Mr. and Mrs. Cullen, your son has made it through surgery." The doctor informed us. Everyone breathed out a sigh of relief at the words. "We were able to extract the bullet and stop all of the internal bleeding. There should be no permanent damage from the shot. He was extremely lucky; the bullet missed the bottom of his lung by an inch. We also managed to reset and tape up his three broken ribs. The rest of them have extensive bruising, though."

"Can we see him?" Esme asked.

"One at a time for now. He's still unconscious and hooked up to quiet a few machines, so don't be alarmed." The doctor answered her.

I bit my lip to keep from asking Esme if I could go in first. Edward was her son, she get's to see him first. It's only fair.

As if reading my mind, she turns to me and cups my face in her hands. "I'll be quick so you can go in next." She said to me.

"You don't have to hurry." I told her.

_I'm not sure that was very convincing._

She just smiled and followed the doctor behind the automatic doors.

Maggie came to stand beside me, putting a hand on my shoulder.

"See, he's going to be alright." She whispered to me.

I nodded, the thought still sinking into my head.

_He's going to be okay. He's going to live. He won't die..._

My face broke out into a smile, I couldn't help it. I wasn't able to contain the sheer relief I felt in every fiber of my being.

About ten minutes later, Esme came back out, her eyes wet, but smiling.

"Go. He's in room twenty-eight." She said to me.

I looked around to everyone, from Carlisle to Alice, wondering if any of them would object to me going next.

"Well go on." Rose said, pushing me forward playfully.

I walked through the automatic doors leading to the ICU, going down the long white and blue hallway, looking at each room number as I passed door after door.

Finally I came to room twenty-eight and slowly pushed it open.

I hardly noticed that an older nurse was there, writing something on a chart, because there was Edward. He was lying in the hospital bed, tubes coming out of him from everywhere. There were bandages on his face, but at least it wasn't bloody anymore.

I walked closer until I was standing beside the bed, looking down at him.

"Can I touch him?" I asked the nurse.

"Of course dear, but I'd advise just holding his hand for now." She told me kindly, in that way that only older people can.

I nodded and smiled at her, and hesitantly reached for his hand, gently wrapping my fingers around his.

Tears filled my eyes and I let out a relieved sob, collapsing into a chair next to the bed.

"Thank you... thank you..." I cried.

I didn't even know who I was thanking.

For the next twenty minutes, all I did was sit and hold his hand, rubbing my thumb against the back of it and tracing patterns across his palm. I never wanted to let him go again, but I knew I'd have to leave eventually. Because no matter how much I wanted to shut myself in this room with him and never let anyone else in, I'm sure the rest of his family was anxious to see him.

"I've gotta go." I said to Edward. I don't know why I was talking to him, he couldn't hear me, but it helped a little. "But I'll be back later. I've got to let everyone else come in."

I stood up, placing a soft kiss on his forehead, before walking out.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

I spent my days with Edward every day, from ten o'clock in the morning - the beginning of visiting hours - until a nurse kicked me out at eight o'clock at night.

I got a little pissed at a nurse that I caught drooling over Edward. Not only was it kind of weird because he was practically in a coma, but when little Nurse Barbie tried to kick me out two hours before visiting hours were over so she could give Edward a 'sponge bath', I snapped.

Thankfully for the nurse, Emmett and Rose were just walking into the room, so Emmett grabbed me just I was about to dig my nails into her bottle blonde hair.

But when I told Rose why I was about to tackle the bitch, she cornered Nurse Barbie and I heard a few choice words out of Rose's mouth, making Nurse Barbie run out without another look at any of us.

I asked for another nurse to be assigned to Edward and was happy when the older nurse that had been here the first day was given the job.

Carlisle was apparently a very well known and popular doctor, because nearly everyone, from nurses to doctors, had heard of him in one way or another. That seemed to mean that he had a say in what was done with Edward, and was given free reign of Edward's medical files for this case.

Edward had been unconscious for five days and it was starting to give me an ulcer. Carlisle said it was just a form of his body and mind resting and repairing, but I was still worried.

What if he never woke up? Okay, he'll probably wake up, but it could be in weeks, even months. I wish he'd wake up for just a few minutes.

The first night, I tried to sleep here, but Rose convinced me to go home and get a good nights sleep. It didn't do any good though. I had been up all night, worrying about Edward.

Carlisle saw that going home at night wasn't helping me, so he'd managed to get one of the smaller, private waiting rooms for the entire family to hang around all day. I could also use it to sleep in at night. I brought plenty of pillows and blankets to try to make the hard makeshift bed as comfortable as possible.

Surprisingly, Alice even sneaked Cheese into the hospital in one of her big Prada purses. I was happy to see him and he enjoyed being petted for a few hours before Alice had to sneak him back out.

Now, I was sitting beside Edward's bed, reading a book. I did that a lot, just sat and read or talked, it helped.

I was engrossed in my book when I caught movement out of the corner of my eye. I looked up at Edward, but he hadn't moved and there was nothing abnormal around the room.

_Maybe I just need to get some more sleep..._

I started reading again and a few minutes went by before I caught the movement again. Glancing back up at Edward, I frowned as I glanced over him... nothing seemed different. So I was about to look down at my book again when I saw Edward's finger twitch.

I shot forward in my seat, throwing the book to the side and gently touched Edward's hand.

"Edward?" I whispered to him.

Three seconds went by before his finger twitched under mine again.

"Can you hear me?" I asked louder. "Move your hand again if you can hear me."

His entire hand clenched after I said it. I gasped and broke out into a smile.

"Carlisle!" I turned around and yelled.

He came rushing into the room. "What?" He asked, looking back and forth between me and Edward.

"I don't know. Edward's finger was moving and I asked him if he could hear me to move his hand he did! I think he's starting to wake up!" I told him.

Carlisle came to stand on the opposite side of the bed and checked the monitors. He lifted Edward's eyelid and shined his little doctors flashlight thingy into his eye.

"He's starting to respond." I heard him mutter.

"Edward, move your hand again, please. Show Carlisle." I pleaded.

Moments later, Edward's fingers curved around mine, like he was trying to hold my hand. I looked up at Carlisle to see him smiling.

"Bella, you're going to have to wait outside as soon as the other doctor gets here so we can examine Edward." Carlisle said.

I nodded at him, but wrapped my fingers around Edward's hand, squeezing.

On queue, Edward's regular doctor; Doctor Cooper came through the door. I reluctantly got up, giving Edward's hand one last squeeze and left, shutting the door behind me. I decided to wait in our little waiting room, where I found Alice sitting there, reading a magazine.

"Edward's waking up." I said to her.

Her head shot up from the magazine and a big smile covered her face.

"Really?" She asked excitedly.

"I think so. He moved his fingers, then when I grabbed his hand and told him to try to squeeze it, he did. Carlisle said that he was starting to respond." I told her.

Alice hummed in excitement, her legs bouncing up and down. I forget sometimes that Edward is her big brother and she's wanted him to wake up just as much as I have. I sat beside her and she reached over and grabbed my hand, giving me a reassuring smile.

We waited together like this for a good hour before Carlisle came in.

"Well?" Alice asked him.

"He's asking for Bella." He said, smiling brightly at me.

My breath caught and I stood up, following him out of the waiting room and down the long hallway.

"He's still waking up and is a little confused because of the pain medication, but he _commanded_ me to go find you and bring you back." He said.

I laughed a little at the image of a drugged up Edward trying to give Carlisle orders.

We stopped at the door to Edward's room and Carlisle turned to me.

"Bella, before you go in, I'd like to talk to you about something serious." He said.

"What is it?" I asked.

"You know he's going to ask you about what happened. But are you going to tell him?" He asked, concern in his eyes.

I blanched, not knowing what to tell him. I hadn't really thought about it while I was worrying over Edward waking up. I probably shouldn't tell him right now, he just woke up after days practically in a coma, I don't want to shock him or make him relapse, but I couldn't really lie to him. Then again, I didn't really want to tell him at all. I was so worried about what his reaction would be, what he would think of me.

"I... I wasn't going to tell him right away." I said.

"Alright. When you do, just remember that he won't think any differently of you." He said quietly, reading my mind.

Before I could say anything else, he opened the door for me and I caught sight of a very angry looking Edward sitting up in bed.

I bit my lip and walked in, praying I could be a good liar for a while.

* * *

**Edward's alive! And he's awake and okay! Now comes the problem of what's going to happen when he finds out about everything that's happened.**

**What do you think is going to happen next? Any theories? I'd love to hear them.**

**Hit that little button and tell me what you think!**


	4. Chapter 4

**I want to thank every single one of you for your reviews and putting me on alert. They mean a lot to me.**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN Twilight.**

* * *

**BPOV**

Edward looked angry as he glared at the wall and I was almost afraid to go in. I was worried that he somehow knew what Alistair did to me and was angry about it.

_Would Edward really be angry about something I couldn't stop?_

I didn't think so, but my worry was killing me over it anyway. It felt like I was developing an ulcer or something.

"Edward." I said softly, trying to get his attention, but not wanting to get too close just in case.

His head snapped so quickly toward me I was going to ask him if he gave himself whiplash.

"Bella." He breathed out, the severe look on his face melting away.

I couldn't help the tears that welled up in my eyes and the way my feet carried me over to his bedside.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." I cried.

"Don't be sorry, you have nothing to be sorry for." He said as I gently wrapped my arms around his neck, careful of his injuries.

He pulled me onto the bed with him, tucking me under his arm. I tried to protest, whining about his injuries, but he ignored me.

"I was so worried about you." I said into his shoulder.

"Sorry I worried you." He whispered.

I just shook my head and burrowed my face further into his chest, breathing him in.

"Are you okay?" Edward asked, pulling away to look me over.

"I'm fine." I said, lying through my teeth.

Edward caught it right away.

"What's wrong?" He demanded.

"I'll tell you later. You just woke up, I don't want you to freak out." I mumbled.

"Is it that bad?" He asked, his eyes darkening.

"I'll tell you later." I repeated. "I'm fine now."

Edward didn't look any happier, but didn't say anything else. I could tell he was still tired and weak, resting his head against mine, struggling to keep his eyes open.

"I'm so sorry I couldn't protect you Bella." He muttered sleepily.

"Go back to sleep, Edward. I'll be here when you wake up." I said.

What was I supposed to say?

_I'm okay with you not being there to save me from getting kidnapped and raped._

I'm not saying it's his fault, I didn't think that at all, but I couldn't really say it was alright that he wasn't there to help me when truthfully, that's all I had thought about during those weeks.

He gripped me as tightly as he could in his state and dozed off to sleep.

I stayed curled into his side, not wanting to disturb his sleep and eventually fell asleep myself.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

I could hear something faint in the background, like someone was talking. It took me a moment to wake up enough to realized that it was Edward and Jasper talking to each other. I didn't open my eyes yet, not wanting to interrupt.

_Yeah, you keep telling yourself that you nosy bitch._

"I didn't mean to yell at her man, I was just freaked out that she could have gotten herself killed." Jasper said quietly.

I was surprised to hear Edward chuckle lightly. "She has a habit of doing things she's not suppose to do. You still shouldn't have yelled at her, though. If I was strong enough, I'd get up and punch you myself. Though I have a feeling Emmett's already done that for me."

"Emmett _and_ Alice. And Rose got her fair share in." Jasper said.

"I don't get it." Edward said slowly. "If you yelled at Bella... she probably should have beaten your ass herself. Why was she afraid of you?"

I literally stopped breathing, holding my breath and tensing my body, praying to anyone that Jasper wouldn't tell Edward why I freaked when he yelled at me.

"You should probably ask Bella that later. It's not really my place to say anything." He answered nervously.

I could hear and feel Edward huff, frustrated.

"I'm not stupid. I have a feeling about what that bastard did, but I just don't want to admit it to myself. The second I get out of here, I'm killing him. I'm killing him and his family and friends, and everyone he's ever worked with. Slowly and painfully." Edward growled, his arm tightening around me.

"That's a lot of people." Jasper said quietly.

"Do you think I care?" Edward asked rhetorically.

There was silence for a few minutes and I was thinking about 'waking up' when Jasper spoke again.

"It was rough for a while and it wasn't good at all, but she made it. Bella's strong. Yes, she was hurt, badly, but she got right back up, dusted herself off and started looking for you. I think it was the only thing that kept her going; finding you. Just... let her explain everything in her own time. She's scared that you won't love her anymore once she tells you."

"Jesus..." Edward mumbled. "Of course I'll still fucking love her. There's nothing in this damn world that would make me _not_ love her."

My heart swelled at his words, curse words and all.

"Yeah well, don't tell me that gooey shit. Tell her that." Jasper said. I could heard the chair he must be sitting in move across the floor and I assumed he was getting up. "I'm going to leave. I've got to do some more ass kissing to Alice. Maybe I can sleep in the bed tonight."

"Good luck." Edward mumbled.

The door clicked shut softly and there was silence left in the room.

Edward's fingertips ran across my arm and I felt him rub his lips against my hair. All I could think is that I was happy I'd worn a long-sleeve shirt, hiding the scars on my arm. I'll have to wear a lot of those until I tell Edward...

"No one hurts my angel and gets away with it." He whispered to himself.

I resisted the urge to grin and fling my arms around him, not wanting him to think I'd heard anything of what they said.

So I waited a few more minutes until I began to squirm around a little, acting like I was starting to wake up.

"Good morning beautiful." Edward whispered into my ear.

I groaned and stretched my sore legs out.

"Good morning." I mumbled.

"Are you alright?" He asked suddenly, his eyebrows furrowing.

"Yeah... Of course I'm alright. Why?" I wondered.

"Nothing. You just had a nightmare a while ago. You don't remember it?" He asked.

I thought for a moment, not remembering have a nightmare, or any kind of dream for that matter.

"No, I can't remember." I said truthfully.

"That's fine. Are you hungry?" He changed the subject.

"Yes, I'll go get us something." I said and started to get up, but he stopped me.

"You don't have to go anywhere. Watch this." He said, smiling a little as he reached for a phone by the bed and pressed a few buttons.

"Edward what are-"

I was cut off by the door opening, letting Emmett through with an arm full of bags.

"Did someone call for food?" Emmett asked, setting the bags down on the end of the bed.

"What the hell?" I asked.

"Carlisle said to get him food... I got him food." Emmett shrugged, pulling carry out box after carry out box out of the bags. "Here. Chocolate chip pancakes for the lady." He said, handing me a little box of said food, whipped cream, syrup and all.

"Um thanks." I said.

"Oh, and make sure he drinks this." Emmett told me, handing me a cup.

"Jesus..." Edward mumbled.

"What is it?" I asked.

"It's some weird protein shake that Carlisle told me to get for Eddie. He's got to drink it." He said, giving Edward a pointed look.

"Don't worry, I'll get him to drink it." I said, smirking at Emmett.

"I'll leave you two alone now." He said, snatching up a carry out box of food and sliding through the door.

"I'm not drinking that shit. It's gross." Edward said petulantly.

"Please drink it." I said, using my sad voice and puppy-dog eyes. "For me... If it'll help you get better, I want you to at least try it."

He sighed, but took the cup from my hand, sniffing it and making a disgusted face before taking a small drink.

"There. I tried it." He said, smiling.

I scowled at him.

"I'll drink it all if you tell me about what happened." He said quietly.

I knew what Edward meant. He was still on about finding out what happened to me while he was gone. But I didn't think I was ready for all that yet. I didn't want to get into that while we were still in the hospital.

Edward saw my hesitation because he was apologizing immediately. "No, don't tell me. I'm sorry Bella, I shouldn't push you into telling me like that. I'm a huge asshole. Just... tell me when you're ready, angel."

"I... I want to tell you, but not here, not while we're still in the hospital. Can it wait until you're healthy enough to go home?" I asked timidly.

"Oh baby, it can wait for however long you need to wait." He assured me.

We sat and ate some of the food Emmett brought us, not talking much, just enjoying being back in each others presence.

Eventually the doctor came in to check all of Edward's vitals and gave him more pain medication. Edward said he wasn't in much pain, but both me and the doctor saw straight through his lie.

People came in and out, visiting Edward, but I never once left. The few times I had tried to when I thought he'd want some privacy, Edward looked at me like I was insane and pulled me back onto the bed with him.

Edward was surprised when Maggie came in, but smiled at her all the same. I bristled a little when they hugged each other, but after that Maggie kept her distance and Edward was nothing more than friendly with her.

It was obvious that even though Maggie might have wanted more with Edward, he didn't think of her that way. Honestly, he treated her just like he treated Alice and Rose.

Four more days passed before the hospital would release Edward, and that was only because he'd have Carlisle watching over him every minute of the day.

Edward threw a fit about leaving the hospital in a wheelchair, and Emmett and Jasper laughing in his face wasn't helping any. Luckily, I was able to talk him into doing it under the stipulation that _I_ wheeled him out, instead of the male nurse Emmett had made sure to get for the job.

He still couldn't move around very well, admitting to me in private that every part of his body was sore and burning. His stomach, where he'd been shot and the shoulder that had been dislocated, hurt the most out of everything.

He tried to be strong and act tough around everyone, but I knew what he was really feeling, and it tore me up inside knowing he was in so much pain.

Right now, Carlisle, Esme and I were driving him home from the hospital. Everyone else had already left the hospital before us, so they'd be at home.

Esme and I had an awkward little conversation when I asked her if there was a room ready for Edward and she just stared back at me with a blank look. Then proceeded to tell me that she assumed he would be staying in my room with me.

I had blushed, embarrassed that Esme thought about me and her son that way. She wasn't a stupid woman, far from it, so I was pretty sure that she could figure out the nature of Edward's relationship with me, but just for her to put it out there like that... it was weird.

She had basically just said that she was confident that her son would be sleeping in my bed. And she can probably figure out we're doing more than cuddling.

So I had just nodded at her and turned around to watch Edward laugh at us.

Carlisle pulled into the garage and helped Edward get out of the car and stand on his own two feet. Edward demanded he could walk on his own, but I saw the slight limp he had when he walked.

I left Edward in the living room with everyone while I went up to my room to make sure everything was okay and put away Edward's possessions he had from in the hospital.

I was in the bathroom, brushing my hair when I heard Edward come in.

"Um Bella... what's that little orange thing on the bed?" He called to me.

_Oops._ _I forgot to tell him about Cheese._

I rushed out of the bathroom to see Edward staring down at Cheese, who was curled up on what would now be Edward's pillow, sleeping soundly.

"Carlisle and Esme got me a kitten." I said, fibbing a little. Technically, Leah had gotten him for me, but I didn't want to explain why a therapist would get me a cat.

"Why?" He asked, not taking his eyes off Cheese.

"Do you not like cats or something?" I asked defensively, not liking the way he was talking about my Cheese.

"I'm more of a dog person, if that's what you're asking. I don't _hate_ cats, but I don't really prefer them either." He explained with a slight frown on his face.

My heart sank.

If Edward didn't like cats, then he wouldn't want Cheese around. I started tearing up at the thought of having to get rid of my precious little kitten that had helped me through so much.

"What's wrong? What did I do?" Edward asked frantically, coming over to stand in front of me. I realized the tears that had been in my eyes moments ago were now flowing down my cheeks as Edward swiped his thumbs over them.

"Please don't make me get rid of him!" I cried.

"What? Why in the hell would you think I'm going to make you get rid of him?" He asked, sounding offended.

"You just said you don't like cats." I sniffled.

"So because I say I don't like cats, you think I'm going to make you get rid of yours?" Edward asked.

"Well... it is your house and you'll be staying in this room too and he usually sleeps in here with me, so he'll be bothering you all the time and-"

He interrupted me by gently resting his index finger over my lips.

"Bella, I'm not going to force you to get rid of something that obviously means so much to you that you cry over just the thought of loosing it. If you love the little fur ball, there's got to be something about it that I can like." He said, smiling down at me.

"Really?" I asked.

"Of course. Do you think I'm the wicked witch of west come to take away your cat, or something?" He asked jokingly.

"No. It's just... the kitten's important to me. Carlisle got him for me as part of something called 'animal therapy' and it's helped me through a lot." I mumbled.

Edward's eyes turned serious again as he processed what I meant.

"Well then he definitely stays. And I'm going to spoil him rotten." He said, going over to sit down on the bed, stretching a hand out to softly pet Cheese.

"Alice, Rose and Emmett already have that taken care of." I said to him.

"What does he eat?" Edward asked.

"Cat food..." I said, confused.

"Well from now on, he's getting tuna and salmon every night." He said, scratching the chin of a now awake and purring Cheese.

I smiled at the sight and came to sit beside him.

"Thank you." I whispered to him.

Edward turned his head and his eyes locked on my arm, furrowing his eyebrows and narrowing his eyes.

I realized too late that I had taken off my jacket when I first came into the room, leaving me in a short sleeved blouse.

Every single one of my scars was visible.

His hand snapped forward to gently grab my wrist. I had to resist the strong urge I had to flinch.

"What are these?" Edward asked quietly, staring at the dull, white, three to four inch long scars scattered across my arm.

"Nothing." I mumbled, trying to pull my arm away, but he wasn't having it.

"Don't lie to me." He growled.

My breathing kicked up a notch out of instinct from the tone of his voice and my movements became almost frantic in trying to get away from him.

"Please let me go." I whimpered.

His eyes drifted up to mine and I watched as they widened with realization before he instantly released my wrist.

"I'm sorry! I'd never hurt you, you know that don't you? I'd rather cut off my own hand then lay it on you in a hurtful manner." He apologized to me with pleading eyes.

I knew Edward wouldn't hurt me, but just like I knew that Emmett or Jasper wouldn't hurt me, it didn't matter to the part of my brain that screamed 'run away!'. So I ended up flinching and overreacting no matter what.

"I know... I just get scared." I whispered.

"That's the problem! I don't want you to be scared of me - ever. It's not your fault. I'm the jackass that did it." He groaned.

I didn't say anything, just looked down at my arm, rubbing my fingers over one of the scars close to my wrist.

"He cut me." I said quietly, still not looking up at him. "He threw me into a bathtub full of freezing water, took out a knife and cut my arm, over and over again, until I was close to passing out."

When I finally did glance up at Edward, he was staring down at me, his face pale and his eyes full of anger, but I knew it wasn't directed at me.

"Carlisle said that most of them would scar due to other circumstances and well... they did." I finished.

"What do you mean by 'other circumstances'?" Edward asked softly, belying the apparent anger he was trying to hold back.

"It happened a few days before I was found, so some of the cuts got infected. Plus I was sick from the cold water, Carlisle said that my immune system being weak didn't help it any." I told him.

"Bella I-"

"I don't want to talk about it anymore." I interrupted, trying to push the memories back down.

"Alright. We don't have to talk about it again tonight." He accepted. "I'm sorry I'm being such an ass. I'm just worried about you and I'm scared for you. It kills me that you won't open up to me, it's like you don't trust me and it makes me panic."

"Edward, I trust you. But I haven't even said the details of what happened out loud to another person before. The only time I've talked about it is with Cheese and I don't think that really counts. I'll tell you, I swear I will, I just need a little time to get myself together." I said to him.

"I've messed up something else too." Edward sighed.

"What?" I asked.

"I've been bugging you about telling me what happened, but I haven't volunteered anything about what happened to me." He said.

"Oh. You don't have to tell me that until you want to." I said, but the truth was deep down I was desperate to know what had happened.

"Well I'm ready to tell you whatever you want to know. Ask me anything." Edward said, pulling me under his arm and tucking me firmly into his side.

I thought for a minute, trying to pick out which question I wanted to ask first.

"Why did you leave with him?" I asked, referring to when I couldn't find Edward at the club.

He sighed, rubbing his hand down his face. "There were a couple reasons. One; he had a gun on me under the table. Second; he informed me that if I tried anything, he'd kill you. I didn't know if he was bluffing or not, but I wasn't about to take any chances with your life. So I went out the back with him, where he had a group of his goons waiting."

"He used me against you..." I whispered to myself.

"I was able to text Jasper quickly under the table, telling him to call you and see if it wasn't too late to get you out. I wasn't too concerned about myself. I could take whatever that bastard threw at me as long as you were okay." He finished.

"Jasper called me and told me to leave the club while I was still in the restroom, so I ran out to try to get to your car, but I didn't have a key. I had to hide in the alley, but one of the men found me anyway. He drugged me or something... he put a weird smelling cloth over my mouth. I just thought he was trying to keep me from screaming, but I blacked out a few seconds afterward." I said.

"I'm so sorry I couldn't help you." He whispered painfully.

"You did what you thought was best. You were trying to keep me alive. How can I fault you for that?" I murmured into his neck.

"It nearly killed you anyway!" He said, frustrated and upset.

"We can't change what happened. We made it through alive, now we've just got to deal with everything else." I said, trying to calm him down.

"You always know what to say." He muttered.

"Can we go to sleep? I'm tired." As I said it, I yawned, putting a hand over my mouth to cover it up.

"Of course we can sleep. Can I lay down with you?" He asked timidly.

"...Yes please." I said, pulling him down on the bed with me, laying beside him.

Edward had to move Cheese over, but they were able to work out through some silent communication thing that Cheese now had to share the pillow.

At first we just laid on our sides beside each other, but I started moving closer to him inch by inch. Edward didn't move a muscle, just laid there and watched me. I knew that was his way of letting me call the shots, even in something as little and trivial as how close we would get.

Eventually, I was barely an inch away from him, my head using his outstretched arm as a pillow.

"Okay?" He murmured.

I nodded my head _yes_ and shut my eyes, burrowing my face into his chest and breathing him in deeply.

"I love you." He whispered into my hair.

I smiled. "I love you too."

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

"You two are just so cute together!" I heard a voice squeak from nearby.

"Alice, leave." Edward growled at her. I could tell he wasn't being too serious, because I felt him smile against my hair.

"Oh calm down! I just came in to get Cheese. He hasn't had his breakfast yet." Alice said. I heard Cheese's little meow after her words, like he was agreeing that he was starving.

_I swear that kitten eats twice as much as most cats, he's a little pig._

"Well take the fur ball and go." Edward grunted.

I frowned at him calling my kitten a fur ball, but I wasn't going to complain... yet.

Alice didn't say another word and a few seconds later, I heard the door close quietly.

Edward gently pulled me closer into him, tightening his arms around me and reaching a hand up to fiddle with a piece of my hair.

"Edward..." I mumbled.

"Good morning beautiful." He cooed in my ear.

I smiled into his chest and blushed at his words.

"Good morning." I whispered back sleepily.

"Do you want some breakfast?" He asked, slowly brushing my hair back from my face.

"Not yet, I just wanna lay here for a while." I said.

Edward rubbed his hand up and down my back in a comforting gesture, relaxing my muscles and making me melt into him.

"That feels good..." I mumbled.

He hummed into my hair and kept on rubbing, his fingertips putting gentle pressure along my spine.

"Bella?" Edward whispered after a minute.

"What?"

"Can I see...?" He nodded his head toward my arm.

I tensed for a moment before I slowly stretched my arm out to him, cringing... waiting for the moment when he would show his disgust and jump off the bed. Edward wrapped his fingers around my wrist, much gentler this time, and held my forearm closer to his face. I shut my eyes, unable to bare the look on his face when he saw how many scars were there.

So I nearly jumped out of my skin when I felt warm lips graze my arm. My eyes shot open to see that he was kissing a scar near my wrist.

His eyes darted up to mine for a moment and when I didn't do anything to stop him, he moved on to another scar, a little higher up, and brushed his lips along the length of it.

I shuddered at the motions, but not in a bad way. It was emotional, watching him kiss and love every blemish that I thought was ugly and disgraceful.

Edward did this to every scar he came across, his eyes looking up to mine every time he got a little higher, making sure I was still alright.

I had tears in my eyes by the time he reached the last one up near my shoulder.

"Kiss me." I blurted out to him. It had been so long since I'd kissed him. Just a few days ago, I thought I'd never get to kiss him again. I was determined to push down any bad feelings I had. I wasn't going to let Alistair ruin this.

"Are you sure?" He asked desperately.

"I'm sure. I want you to, just... slowly, please?" I whimpered.

"Anything, angel. Anything that you need." He murmured, pressing his lips against my forehead.

He brought a hand up slowly to cup my cheek, his lips just barely brushing against my own. I leaned forward, effectively molding our lips together. Edward slowly moved his lips against mine, working my top lip between his and sucking it ever so gently, making me whimper.

It was a relatively chaste kiss, no tongues, just lips moving together with whimpers and moans here and there.

Edward placed a couple quick pecks on my thoroughly kissed lips and pulled back.

"Okay?" He asked me breathlessly.

"Uh huh." I nodded, still woozy from his amazing kissing skills.

"Good." He murmured, pecking my nose.

We stayed cuddled together in the bed, neither of us wanting to get up for anything. I was slowly starting to get use to being touched without flinching away. Edward wouldn't hurt me, but I just had to wait for the part of my brain that protested against anyone touching me to realize that.

I needed to tell him what happened so he could really understand. I was sure he knew, or at least had a pretty good idea, but he needed to hear it from me.

After a good twenty minutes of laying in silence, with me playing with my fingers and wearing a hole in my lip, I exhaled deeply and looked up at him.

I didn't know how to start off, so I just blurted out the first thing that came to mind and went from there.

"I was so afraid that he had killed you!" I practically yelled.

Edward's fingers froze on their trip up my shoulder and he locked eyes with me, willing me to continue.

"He told me later on that he did kill you. And he stuck me in the room with that crazy woman! I hated her! She was always saying weird things to me and just sitting in the corner, doing drugs all the time." I rushed out quietly. I didn't look back up at him, in fear of what his reaction would be.

"She made me do some drugs one time." I continued. "She made me do some cocaine. I didn't want to make her angry, so I went ahead and just did some."

I heard Edward take in a sharp breath as he listened to me, his muscles in his arms tensing.

"And then... then Alistair came in." I whispered hoarsely. I choked up and couldn't say another word,

"It's okay angel, I love you no matter what. Anything that happened wasn't your fault, I don't blame you." He said to me softly, stroking my hair gently. It was like he read my mind, or sensed what was wrong.

"H-He... he r-raped me." I blurted out, tears pouring down my face.

Edward's body shook and he had to bring his hand away from my arm, seeing him fist it tightly in the fabric below us.

"I'll kill him." He growled.

It shouldn't have filled me with sick joy at the thought of Alistair dead... but it did. I wanted Edward to kill him. I wanted to see his cold, dead body lying there after everything he did to me, to Edward, and to our families.

"I want you to kill him." I whispered into his chest.

Edward glanced down at me before heated resolve filled his eyes. "Don't worry; I will."

* * *

**A lot of you were correct in your theories about what Edward's reaction would be. Do you honestly think I'd have Edward hate her and push her away? Come on. Have some faith and trust in me.**

**You can friend me on Facebook. I'm under Malin Halibell. I don't bite, unless you're into that kind of thing.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN Twilight.**

* * *

**BPOV**

"Bella, can I talk to you?" Jasper's voice asked timidly.

I looked up from the book I was reading to see him standing in the doorway to the den.

It had been three days since Edward had come home and the first time Jasper had been given the opportunity to talk to me without someone being around.

Esme, Alice and Maggie went out to get more grocery's and Edward was in the training room with Emmett, Carlisle, and I'm sure Rose was in there cackling and teasing Edward. He was insistent about building up the muscle that he'd lost over the past two months and the workouts also helped him focus on something other than the soreness he was always feeling.

I didn't get it though. I thought working out would only make him more sore, but he said it was just a guy thing between him and Emmett.

So that had left me alone in the den with my books and the TV, which was perfectly fine with me. I had desperately wanted some peace and quiet, especially after the talk I'd had with Edward the other day.

At first he was angry, like throw-things-around-the-room angry, but he had waited until I was in the shower. When I came out though, the bedroom was a mess. It looked like a tornado had come through, with Edward sitting on the edge of the bed with his head in his hands.

He apologized, saying he'd clean everything up himself.

Afterwords, he became what I would call clingy. He was always around me, like he was afraid that if I left his sight something would happen to me. And he'd get grumpy when Alice or Rose would try to pry me away from him for some girl time.

I couldn't take it anymore, snapping and yelling at him in the middle of the kitchen when he made me spill the spaghetti sauce I'd been working on for over an hour all over the floor. I hadn't noticed he was standing practically right behind me and I narrowly missed flinging the hot sauce all over him when I turned to pour it into a bowl.

After I finished screaming at him so loudly that everyone in the house came down to investigate, I ran off to our room before I could say anything else mean or hurtful.

It had been another two hours before I heard a soft knock at my door, Esme calling to me that she had finished making dinner. I felt bad leaving the sauce for her to clean up, but when I tried to apologize, she waved me off saying Edward had cleaned it up.

Dinner had been awkward, the tension in the room was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Edward would rarely look up at me, but when he did, he managed to look like a wounded puppy. It frustrated me that I couldn't stay angry with him when he did that.

Afterward, we had a long talk about boundaries and I asked why he felt the need to be by my side every second of the day. He told me it was hard to have me out of his sight, where he couldn't protect me if need be.

I had melted a little at that, but told him it wasn't necessary to protect me in the house and that I needed space from him once and while.

We came to an understanding that we would each have some alone time sometime during the day, so that I wouldn't go crazy and snap again, and so that he'd have time to get over his obsessive need to protect me.

That was another reason he was currently working out; it gave me an hour or two by myself and gave him an opportunity to work off some frustration along with everything else.

So I was puzzled and a little peeved that Jasper had come to interrupt my quiet time.

"I guess." I said, answering his question. I watched as he walked in and sat down in a chair opposite my place on the couch.

"Bella... I'm sorry." Jasper started off quietly. "I'm sorry I yelled at you like I did. That was out of line. I was only worried about you. You're like my little sister, it scared the crap outta me when I found out that you had sneaked off like that. You could have been hurt or killed, or captured again. What if Alistair had been there and he saw you? Do you think he'd just let you go if he found you again?"

I flinched at his words and glared down at the closed book in my hands.

"I just wanted to find Edward. I stayed hidden the car, no one would have seen me." I said.

"Oh? And what if Emmett and the others had failed? You and Rosalie would have been wide open. It's bad enough that Rose went out there, but at least she can defend herself." Jasper said heatedly.

"Are you trying to say I can't defend myself?" I asked.

"That's part of what I'm saying, yes." He said.

I huffed and crossed my arms angrily. Jasper was right of course. I could barely throw a punch, and that's only because Charlie had insisted on teaching me. I'd never been much on karate and other ways of fighting, I'd always been more of a bookworm.

"Then teach me." I said.

"What?" He sounded surprised by my request.

"Teach me to defend myself. That's part of the problem." I said.

"That's a _small_ part of the problem. The big part of the problem was that you could have gotten yourself hurt... again." He insisted.

I sighed and leaned forward.

"You just said that you weren't as worried about Rose because she can defend herself. So teach me to defend myself. That way you don't have to worry so much about me all the time, and I can fight away any possible future attacker." I told him.

He looked at me like I had grown another head for a second.

"Think of it as a peace offering." I threw in.

Jasper quirked a blonde eyebrow and smirked.

"Deal, but you'll start off with Rose. She can teach you the basics and all the different ways that girls can fight dirty." He said with a small smile.

"Alright." I agreed.

"What are you two conspiring about in here?" Maggie asked as she came in.

I had been talking to Jasper so intently that I hadn't heard them get back from the store.

"We're not conspiring. Bella here wants me to teach her how to fight." Jasper explained.

"Oh! Can we set it up like Fight Club?" She asked.

"No!" Jasper and I yelled at her together.

"Well you two are no fun." She complained and went off to finish helping with the groceries.

"Are we really okay now?" Jasper asked, suddenly turning serious again.

"Yeah, we're okay. I understand why you were angry, but if it had been reversed; if it had been Alice in trouble and I was telling you to sit around the house and do nothing but wait, what would you have done?" I asked, trying to get him to see my point of view.

He sighed and rubbed his face.

"... I would have... done the same thing." He admitted slowly.

"See? It's hard to sit around and do nothing while the person you love is out there, getting tortured or murdered." I said.

"Touche." He muttered.

Edward walked in that moment and I did a double take. He didn't have a shirt on, just a pair of loose workout short and tennis shoes. He was sweaty, his abs flexing as he took in deep breaths. And while all that surprisingly got my lady bits going, it was the first time I'd seen him shirtless in weeks... months, so I took in all the damage that had been done to his body.

I could see the scarred bullet wound on his upper stomach, an angry red color. There were also a few other little dark pink scars along his abs and pecs. I knew he had had bruises, but they seemed to have faded away.

"Hey beautiful." Edward greeted me, plopping down beside me on the couch.

I blushed and put my book aside, not taking my eyes off his his bare chest. For some reason, I found sweaty Edward incredibly sexy.

"Edward Anthony! Get off my couch!" Esme screeched.

He immediately jumped up and looked around him wildly.

"What?" He asked her.

"Young man, you know better than to sit on my furniture while you're all gross and sweaty." She scolded.

"But I need to sit down!" He whined.

"Go take a shower and you can sit anywhere you want." She told him.

Edward groaned and walked off, presumably to take a shower.

Meanwhile, I was still slightly hot and bothered. I didn't know why Edward like that turned me on so much. I didn't know I could get turned on that easily, at least not anymore. Sex was the last thing on my mind and while I enjoyed kissing Edward, I didn't think I was anywhere near ready for sex after what Alistair did to me. To put it bluntly, getting raped doesn't exactly turn you on to sex for a while.

Every time Edward would get carried away while making-out, I would get images of Alistair. Of him on top of me, of him shoving his tongue in my mouth, of him... doing all those other things. I'd have to pull away and calm down, remembering that it was Edward.

"I'm going to go upstairs." I mumbled to Jasper and grabbed my book.

By the time I got into my room, Edward was already in the shower, steam rolling out from under the door. I laid down in the bed on my stomach, resting my chin on my folded arms and waited.

The shower eventually turned off and Edward walked out with a white towel wrapped around his waist, another one in hand that he was drying his hair with.

"Hey." He smiled at me.

"You're in a good mood all of a sudden." I commented.

"The workout helped a lot. Carlisle said my problem was I just had too much pent up energy." He said.

I hummed and watched as he dug through the dresser for clothes.

"What do you want to do later?" He asked.

"Can I see?" I repeated the words he used when he was asking to see the scars on my arm.

He turned and looked at me curiously. I sat up and nodded toward him, looking at his chest and he got it. Without another word, he walked over until he was standing in front of me, between my legs.

I tried to ignore the towel hanging haphazardly from his hips and focused a bit higher up.

"Can I?" I asked, holding my hand up toward one of the scars on his abs.

"Of course." He said.

I gently trailed my fingertips over a little pink scar. It wasn't more than an inch long, but it still stood out. I did this to the other six he had scattered across his torso, feeling the muscle beneath them clench as my fingers ghosted over them.

Finally, I came to his bullet wound, saving it for last. It wasn't so red now, more of a dark pink and a little puckered around the edges.

"It's ugly, right?" He said in a joking voice.

"I think it's sexy." I murmured shyly.

"It's sexy?" He repeated me, raising an eyebrow.

I shrugged and tried to turn away, feeling stupid.

"Wait, wait. You think it's sexy?" He stopped me, smirking a bit.

"Yeah. I mean, I feel horrible about the way it happened and I'd do anything to take it back, but it gives you that whole bad boy thing." I said, blushing a deep red.

"I didn't know that you liked the bad boy look." Edward said, grinning at me.

"I didn't know either until I saw you all sweaty after your workout." I admitted.

"You really think it's sexy?" He asked again.

"Very." I assured him.

Edward leaned down to kiss me, cupping my face in his hands. His tongue came out, tracing along my bottom lip and making me give a little moan.

I guess now's a good a time as any...

"Edward... does it matter a lot to you when we have sex again?" I asked quietly against his lips.

He pulled back and frowned.

"I'm pressuring you, aren't I? Damn it!" He growled.

"No! You're not pressuring me! I don't feel pressured." I said quickly. "I just don't know when I'll be ready to go all the way."

"Bella, don't worry about me. Whenever _you_ are ready is when I'll be ready." He said to me.

"Are you sure?" I asked.

"Yeah. I know you probably won't be ready for a while. I'll just take a lot of cold showers." He laughed awkwardly.

"But that's not fair to you." I protested.

"I can get by with cold showers for a while, I've done it before." He said.

"That's what I'm worried about." I muttered under my breath.

"What do you mean?" He asked, unfortunately catching my remark.

"Edward, I'm not stupid. I know that men are strongly driven by sex. And if you're not getting any for a while, you're going to get sick of putting up with me and go off to find some other girl that can give you what you need!" I said almost hysterically.

"Excuse me?" Edward pulled away from me. "Please don't tell me you just said that I'd go out and find another woman to sleep with just because you think I can't wait for you to be ready."

"I-I didn't mean it like that!" I exclaimed. "I'm just scared and confused! One minute I'm wanting to go further with you and the next I'm scared because I can't stop these horrible flashbacks from running through my mind. And I don't know if or when you'll get tired of dealing with me and just leave."

Edward knelt in front of me, taking both my hands in his and bringing them up to his lips. "Bella, I will never cheat on you. Never. I would rather have blue balls for the rest of my life with you than go out and have some meaningless fuck with a slut I pick up at a bar and lose you. And as for going further, I won't push you, I won't leave you because you're not ready for something, I don't blame you for any of it. You were raped Bella, that takes a while to get over, like it or not."

"I know." I whispered. "Sometimes I really do want to go further with you, but other times I just get too scared."

"You don't need to be scared, angel. Not with me." He murmured against my fingers.

"I remember something that Rose told me to try, before..." I trailed off. Edward got what I meant and nodded for me to continue. "She told me that I should try being the one in control. That I should ummm... be on top." I blushed a little at the image it conjured up.

"Well, we can try that whenever you're ready." Edward said.

"Later? Like not tonight later, but maybe tomorrow or the day after?" I asked.

"Bella, I don't want you to do this because you're feeling pressured." He said.

"No! I just want to try it to see how far we can get. It'll be like laying ground rules. See how far things can go before I get scared, so we know not to go further until later." I explained.

"That sounds like a perfect idea." He said, kissing my forehead.

"I'm sorry I freaked out and said all those things about you going out to find another girl." I apologized in a whisper.

"It's okay, angel. But I need you to know and trust that I will never cheat on you, no matter what happens." Edward said.

"I do know." I said, burying my face in his neck. "I trust you Edward, I'm just... nervous that you won't want me or something."

"I'll always want you. Even when we're eighty years old, gray and wrinkly I'll still want you." He chuckled.

I froze. He basically just said that he wanted to grow old with me.

"Ummmm..." I mumbled, not knowing what to say.

"That's not how I wanted that to come out." He said.

"So you didn't mean it?" I asked, my heart sinking.

"I meant it, I just didn't want it to come out that way..." He clarified.

"Well, how _did_ you want it to come out?" I asked, pulling back enough to look at his face.

"I was thinking someplace a bit more romantic and maybe down on one knee with a box in my hand." Edward said quietly, watching me closely for my reaction.

I choked, I couldn't help it. Oh my God... he did not just say he wanted to propose to me. That's what getting down on one knee was about, right?

"Wait. Sorry, I... damn it." He stuttered out.

"Do you mean it?" I whispered.

"I mean it... I mean it with all my heart. But I know you're probably not ready for something like that." Edward said.

"You want to... to marry me?" I asked, making sure we were talking about the same thing here.

"Yes, I want to marry you." He said confidently. "You don't have to give me an answer, considering this isn't an official proposal or anything, but I just want you to know that I want to marry you someday."

_Please don't let me faint... please don't let me faint..._

Was I ready for something like marriage? I was only eighteen... a lot of people get married young. At least I wasn't back in Forks, knocked up and getting married to one of the guys I went to high school with.

This was different right? I love Edward, he loves me... I'm not knocked up or being pressured into it because I have to.

But I wasn't sure if I was ready for that just yet. At least not while everything was still going on. The guys were trying to hunt Alistair down, not to mention James. I was still emotionally and mentally scarred. It was just one big mess.

"Edward, I love you... but I'm not sure marriage is a good idea with everything going on. But, I'd love to get married to you, one day." I said slowly.

"One day." Edward murmured, kissing my lips.

A knock on the door interrupted us. Edward pulled away with a growl, glaring at the door.

"What is it?" He called.

"We've got a little problem." Carlisle's voice said through the door.

Edward got off the bed and opened the door, revealing a frowning Carlisle leaning against the door frame.

"What kind of problem?" Edward asked.

"Your uncle is here, and he's not happy." Carlisle said, sounding almost bored.

He didn't sound very concerned with it, so I didn't panic, but I wondered why Edward's uncle being here would be a problem.

Edward sighed and banged his head against the door.

"Alright, let me get dressed and I'll be down in a minute." He said, shutting the door.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing serious. It's just my uncle being my uncle. I didn't think he'd come all the way here though... that's why he sent Benjamin; he didn't want to come himself." Edward said, frowning as he put a t-shirt on.

"Should I stay up here?" I asked him. I didn't want to be in the way if this was a family problem.

"No, you can come down with me. You don't have to stay holed up in here." He said, smiling at me.

I turned my head away when I saw he was about to drop his towel. It's not like I've never seen it before, but for some reason it was awkward. Not that uncomfortable awkward. That awkward that made you want to giggle, and I didn't think Edward would take it well when I started laughing at that part of him.

So I waited with my head turned until he put on his jeans and jokingly gave me the all clear. I made sure I was halfway presentable and took Edward's hand, letting him led me out of our room and down the stairs.

I could hear people talking in the den, but I couldn't tell what they were saying. I expected Edward to walk there, but instead, he went to the kitchen. I could see why.

Everyone except Carlisle and Esme was in the kitchen, looking like they were hiding in here.

"What's going on?" Edward asked.

Emmett shrugged. "Uncle Aro's not happy about something, didn't say what. He just demanded to talk to dad and a few minutes later, dad went up to get you, so I guess Aro wants to talk to you too. We've been hiding out in here, trying to hear what they're talking about."

"Alright, Bella stay here with everyone for a while." Edward said, leaning down to place a kiss on my head and slowly walked out. He wasn't in any hurry apparently.

Alice came over and put her arm around my waist.

"What's that look on your face about?" She asked, smiling her little devious smile.

"What look?" I asked.

"That over the moon look." She said.

"Nothing... just uh, Edward and I talked about something and I'm kinda happy. Really happy." I couldn't resist the huge urge to grin as I said it.

"That's all you're going to tell me?" Alice whined.

"Annoying, isn't it?" I asked, winking at her.

She stuck her tongue out at me and shoved me playfully.

We both jumped when the voices in the den got louder. I could hear Edward shouting about something and another, unfamiliar voice yelling back.

"If you would have killed them to begin with, we wouldn't be having this problem!" The strange voice, who I was assuming was Aro, yelled.

"I wasn't going to risk Bella getting killed!" Edward yelled back.

"You nearly died and put your entire family at risk for what? Some piece of ass you're going to throw away in a few months?" Aro shouted.

I flinched at that one and looked down at my feet, the air in the kitchen suddenly thick and uncomfortable.

"Oh hell no." Emmett muttered angrily, sidestepping around Rose and rushing out the kitchen.

"Emmett don't!" I called out after him, but he didn't stop.

"He did not just... come on." Rose mumbled, grabbing my hand and pulled me along like I was a rag-doll. I did not want to go out there. Aro obviously didn't like me, without even meeting me. Edward and Emmett would no doubt be yelling at him and God knows what else, and now Rose was dragging me into the lion pit.

Rose barged into the den, Edward was inches away from the man whom I assumed was Aro, having a yelling match with him, Esme had her face in her hands, sitting on the couch. Carlisle looked like he was about to blow and Emmett was trying to get past Edward to Aro.

"Hey asshole!" Rose shouted at Aro. He immediately stopped yelling at Edward and turned to her. "I'd like you to meet someone. This is Bella; the love of Edward's life, the girl that somehow managed to pull the stick out of his uptight, grumpy ass. A girl we consider our sister and love. I believe you owe her an apology for that 'piece of ass' comment." She snapped, sarcasm rolling off her in waves at that last comment.

Even when yelling at someone else, she manages to get one in on Edward. The girl has a gift.

Aro paled, his light blue eyes going from Rose, to me and everyone around the room.

It was like all the air had been sucked out of the room. No one moved or talked, just stared at me and Rose.

I think I was about to pass out.

Aro composed himself, straightening up and clearing his throat.

"I owe no one an apology. I know my nephew and his... _choices_ in women. This one will be just like all the rest; used up and thrown away." He said snidely.

_I hate this man._

The self-conscious part of me was nagging away in the back of my head, telling me he was right, but it was getting smaller and smaller. As far as I knew, Edward had never done anything he'd done for me for a woman in his past. And I'm sure Rose would have told me anything I needed to know about that.

I would not be intimidated by this asshole's words.

Edward and Emmett opened their mouths simultaneously, about to start yelling again when I spoke out.

"You know nothing about Edward." I said loudly. "You know nothing about how much he cares about me and how much I care about him. I didn't ask Edward to do any of those things for me, to save me, to help me. But he did them anyway, because he loves me. Because I'm not just some piece of trash he can throw away. So I suggest you shut up about things that you can't even begin to comprehend."

Everyone looked at me, dumbstruck. I couldn't believe I had just said that to this important, halfway scary looking, relative of the Cullen's.

I tried desperately not to shrink away from him and hide behind Rose as he glared at me.

"She's right. Don't blame her for Edward's choices." Carlisle said. "And Edward's changed. He's not the way he use to be. Bella changed something in him - in a very good way."

Aro continued to glare at me, but slowly turned back to Carlisle and Edward.

"It still doesn't excuse what he has let slide. If he wouldn't have been worrying over... _her_..." He eyed me scathingly. "we wouldn't be having problems."

"What problem is that exactly?" Rose asked.

"He's worried about Alistair." Edward told her heatedly. "Alistair isn't the kind of guy to go away after you've escaped him. He's known for hunting people down and finishing what he started."

A shiver ran up my spine at Edward's words.

_Finishing what he started..._

"Well, just kill him when he finally does show his scummy face." Rose said.

"That's another problem; he's also very elusive. Why do you think I haven't hunted that bastard down and killed him already? He's impossible to find. Hell, Jasper had to pull Maggie in so we could find Bella. I don't think Alistair is going to fall for that trick twice." Edward said, pacing the living room like a caged animal.

"James." I whispered.

Edward's head snapped up to me. "What?"

"James... we found you because of some connection Alistair had with James. What if we can do that again?" I asked. "It can't be a coincidence that Alistair had people taking you to buildings that James or people that James knew owned. They could be working together on something."

"Damn. Beautiful, has great taste in food, and mega smart. You don't deserve this one Eddie." Emmett laughed.

A slow smile spread across Edward's face and he sprinted over to me, kissing me quickly before pulling away.

"You're right; I don't deserve her, but she likes me around anyway."

* * *

… **And breathe. A lot happened in this chapter. What did you think? The possibility of marriage? And what's with Aro coming in acting all high and mighty? Asshole...**

**You can find me on Facebook under Malin Halibell. **

**Hit that little button down there and tell me what you think! Please, with a sweaty, ab-tastic Edward on top?**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN Twilight! I do own this package of Twizzlers I'm munching on right now. I'd rather have Twilight.**

* * *

**BPOV**

_Edward's tongue glided over the skin at my waist, trailing up to just under my breasts. I moaned, arching my back, pushing myself against his lips. _

"_More?" A whisper drifted up to me. _

"_Please..." I murmured heatedly. _

_Without a word, he shifted higher up my body and his lips surrounded my nipple, sucking gently and laving his tongue across it. I whimpered, twisting my fingers through his hair and pushing him against me. _

"_So good." I mumbled. _

_Edward hummed against my breast, making the sensation course through my entire body until it ended, vibrating between my legs. _

_He repeated his actions on my other breast, sucking, licking and gently scraping his teeth across it, never too harsh though. His hands lightly brushed over my ribs, my hips, my thighs... making a circuit over my body. _

_My fingers were everywhere as well; running through his hair, scraping my nails down his neck and shoulders, gripping his biceps. _

_Edward's fingers grazed the inside of my thigh, not going any further or backing away. _

"_Don't stop..." I groaned, bucking my hips toward his hand. _

_His fingers grazed over me, making me gasp as he slowly sunk his middle finger into me._

_My head tossed and turned, my body arching and bucking into him as his finger gently worked in and out of me. _

"_More... please more..." I whimpered. _

_Edward's fingers disappeared, but before I could really complain, he was settled between my thighs, his cock rubbing against me. _

"_I love you." He murmured breathlessly into my ear before sliding into me._

I woke up with a gasp, sitting straight up in bed, clutching the covers to my chest.

"What's wrong?" Edward asked sleepily, making me jump.

"Nothing. I just had a dream." I panted out.

"Was it a nightmare?" He asked, concern coloring his voice.

"Uh... no, definitely not a nightmare." I mumbled, blushing.

_Thank God he hadn't turned the lights on._

I squirmed around, surprised to feel that I was... uh... aroused down there.

_Well, I did have a wet dream..._

"Bella, is something wrong?" He asked again, noticing my squirming.

"No. I'm just going to go to the bathroom." I squeaked and jumped out of bed.

"Bella!" He called after me, but I was already in the bathroom, slamming the door shut.

What was _that_?

_That was your subconscious telling you it wants you to jump Edward's bones._

Shut up!

Great, now I'm talking to myself.

I inhaled deeply, trying to pull myself out of crazy-town.

I went over to the sink and splashed some water on my face, cooling down. When I looked up at the mirror, I saw my face was still pink and my eyes were bright, water dripping off my nose.

Taking a few minutes in the bathroom, I took my time walking back to the bedroom, hoping Edward had fallen back asleep with I was gone.

I wasn't that lucky.

Edward was sitting up in bed, the covers bunched up around his waist. He'd turned the little lamp on the bedside table on, filling the room with a soft glow.

"Are you alright?" He asked as I climbed back into the bed.

"Fine. It was just a dream." I reassured him.

"You were moaning and saying my name. Are you sure it wasn't a nightmare?" He asked.

I blushed wildly, not having realized I was talking in my sleep.

_I had a wet dream about Edward... while he listened to me moan about it in my sleep._

"It um... wasn't a nightmare." I said quietly. "It was about us. We were... doing _stuff_." I mumbled past my embarrassment to try to explain it to him.

Edward frowned for a moment before understanding lit up his entire face.

"Oh!" He chuckled.

"It's not funny!" I whined, but I was having trouble not trying to smile myself.

"I'm sorry!" He tried to apologize, but he was still laughing.

I sat there with my arms crossed until his fit died down.

"Better?" I asked playfully.

"Why are you so embarrassed?" Edward asked, bypassing my question.

"I had a... a _wet dream _about you." I whispered.

"It's not a freaking sin, Bella. A lot of people have wet dreams. I've had a couple wet dreams about you." He said, admitting it like he was talking about the weather.

"You've had dreams like that about me?" I asked, interested now.

"Let's go back to sleep." He said hurriedly, reaching over to turn the lamp off.

"No, no, no! I told you, now you tell me." I protested, laughing.

"I've had... a few." Edward mumbled.

"And...?" I wanted him to continue.

"It's perfectly normal, I guess. Everyone has wet dreams." He said.

"Yeah, but what's in yours? You said they were about me. What about the details?" I asked, smiling and enjoying the uncomfortable look on his face way more than I should.

"I don't think I should have that conversation with you right now." Edward said.

The smile fell off my face and turned into a frown.

"Why not?" I asked.

"I just don't think it's a good idea for me to talk about the sex dreams I have about while you're... well, while you're the way you are now." He said, obviously not knowing how to say it.

"Oh. Okay." I said, turning over and laying back down.

"Oh jeez Bella, I didn't mean-"

"It's fine, Edward. I'm tired, let's just go back to sleep." I interrupted.

Edward didn't say anything else, I felt him lay down behind me and his hand gently touched my arm, like he wanted to pull me against him, but pulled away the last second and sighed. I felt tears well up in my eyes and I wiped my face against the pillow to get rid of them.

I hated this. I hated that I had dreams about me and Edward that make me think I'm ready or I wanted him, but whenever we'd try something I'd freak out. I hated that Edward thought he couldn't talk about certain things with me. I hated that it was like he was just waiting for me to have a breakdown.

But really... I hated that he was probably right about it.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

After waking up and eating some breakfast, Edward went off with Jasper and Emmett to do their thing to find Alistair and/or James, while I tracked down Rose and Alice. I needed some serious girl talk.

Now, the three of us and Maggie, were in Rose's room.

"So... you want to have sex with him... but you don't..." Maggie said, confused.

_Yeah, welcome to my personal life._

"That's kind of the gist of it." I said to her. "And Edward gets all weird every time I bring up the subject of sex and I don't know what to do." I groaned, flopping back onto Rose's bed.

"Well, it's obvious that a part of you is ready, or at least thinks you're ready. Maybe you should explore that side." Rose suggested.

"But how do I bring that up to Edward? He pretty much shuts down or changes the subject whenever I try to bring it up." I asked.

"Make him listen." Alice giggled.

I raised an eyebrow at her in question.

"I think Alice means... seduce him." Maggie supplied an answer.

"Well, not _seduce_ him. Just... get things going." Alice said. "Make sure he knows what you want."

"Huh." I muttered, thinking about how to do what she was suggesting.

"What about Edward gets you all hot and bothered?" Rose asked.

I blushed and gasped. "Rose!"

"Trust me. Just answer the question, we're not going to judge, we've all got our little things that get us going." She said.

"Well... the other day when he was done working out... I was really turned on because he was all sweaty and shirtless." I mumbled, beet red the entire time.

"Oooh..." Maggie grinned.

"Shut up." I playfully snapped at her.

"Do it when you find him most attractive or are most turned on by him. It'll make it a little easier for you and your fear or nervousness won't be so prominent. And remember; be on top. You need to be in control." Rose told me seriously.

I nodded; it sounded like a very good idea and she was making a lot of sense.

"So, what about Benjamin?" Alice suddenly asked Maggie, thankfully taking me out of the spotlight.

Maggie immediately blushed like me and suddenly found everything in the room extremely interesting.

"What about him?" She muttered, looking down at the rug.

"He likes you." I giggled.

"He's cute." Maggie said, shrugging.

"Is that all?" Alice asked.

"Benjamin asked me out yesterday." She admitted quickly.

"He what?" We all asked at once.

"What did you tell him?" Rose asked, moving up to sit on her knees.

"I said that I'd go out to dinner with him." Maggie mumbled shyly, smiling.

Alice and Rose squealed with delight and I smiled, happy that Maggie was finding someone to be happy with. A secret, small part of me deep down was doing a dance because if she found someone else, she wouldn't try to go after Edward.

"Bella!" Edward called through the house.

"Your man calls for you." Alice teased.

I stuck my tongue out at her and hopped off the bed, going out to see what he wanted. Going down the stairs, I went around the corner to the living room to see Edward and Jasper shoving each other around.

"What is it?" I asked. Edward reached out to gently pull me to him.

"Why didn't you tell me that you wanted to learn how to fight?" He asked.

I shot a glance at Jasper, his face neutral.

"I... I don't know. I just thought of it when Jasper and I started talking and-" I began rambling, getting panicked that Edward was upset with me about it, but he put his finger against my lips, quieting me.

"Bella, it's okay. I'm not mad. You think I'd be mad at you wanting to learn to defend yourself? I actually think it's a very good idea." He said to me.

"Well then what..." I was confused about what this was all about if he wasn't mad.

"Why didn't you come to me to teach you?" Edward asked, sounding a little hurt.

_Oh_.

"I didn't think that you would be in the best of shape for something like that, yet." I said, mentally cringing as I said it.

"I can teach you to throw a punch and some defense moves, Bella. I'm not completely useless." Edward said, trying to make it sound light, but I could tell there was something underneath it.

"Jasper, leave please." I said over my shoulder.

He didn't say anything, just silently walked out. I waited until his footsteps faded away until I took Edward by the arm and led him to the couch. Curling up on his lap, careful of his stomach, I took his still battered face in my hands.

"You are not useless, Edward." I whispered to him seriously, looking him directly in the eyes.

He didn't say anything, just sat there and tried to avoid eye contact with me, but I wasn't having it.

"Edward!" I said louder, pulling his face to mine, our foreheads touching. "You're not useless."

"Yes I am." He whispered so softly to me I had trouble hearing him. "I couldn't protect you. I can't help you with your... fears. You still flinch every once and a while. You may not notice it, but I do. It's so subtle. Just a minute ago, when I pulled you to me and asked you those questions, you looked like I was about to blow up at you. And the cat. You nearly had a fucking panic attack thinking I was going to make you get rid of it. I would never do any of those things. It breaks my fucking heart to know that I wasn't able to save you from going through all that pain. I wish to God I could have shot Alistair right there in that club."

I listened to him talk, tears forming in my eyes. I didn't think that I still flinched anymore. Especially not from Edward.

"None of that is your fault." I said, trying to talk around the lump in my throat. "You _were_ protecting me, Edward. If you would have tried anything, he would have done a lot more to me than he did. I probably wouldn't be here... be able to touch you, to kiss you, to tell you how much I love you."

"I will kill him for you. I'll kill him for everything he's done to hurt you." Edward whispered to me hoarsely.

A shiver ran up my spine, part from fear and part from a sick pleasure from his words.

"Teach me." I said after a few minutes. "I want you to teach me to defend myself."

He pulled back and looked at me carefully, searching for something in my eyes.

"I'll teach you." Edward agreed.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

"Put your weight into it." Edward stressed.

"I am." I growled at him.

"You weigh more than that." He said, then froze. "Shit... I didn't mean that you're fat or anything."

"Shut up, Edward." I groaned, quickly loosing my patience with all this self defense stuff.

I was a panting, sweaty, sore mess. And I was quickly starting to wonder what the hell I was thinking when I suggested this.

"Come on, just a few more minutes, then we can be done." He said, helping me get back into position.

Edward and I had already gone over several moves, including the ever popular and effective 'foot-meets-man-jewels move'. Edward's words, not mine. I'd gotten that down pat. There was a moment when I thought I'd permanently damaged Edward's goods, with him curled up on the floor for a minute, not talking and his entire face red.

Now he was trying to teach me to throw a punch that would actually do some damage, or enough for me to be able run away. So far, I hadn't fazed him much. I had been surprised when he actually told me to punch him, but when I finally did punch him and he barely flinched, I saw his point.

He told me to put my weight into the punch, following through with my whole body. I was trying, put I wasn't very strong.

On the plus side, Edward was dressed in his regular workout clothes; running shorts and tennis shoes, nothing else. Giving me quite the view of his bare chest and abs, including that little V thing on his hips that I just wanted to lick.

Yeah. That was getting a little distracting.

"Just throw everything you've got into it." Edward pulled me out of my thoughts.

I did as he said, swinging my fist forward, turning my entire body into it. My fist made contact with Edward's jaw and he actually stumbled back a couple steps.

"Better... you're getting better." He muttered, shaking his head and rubbing the spot on his jaw where I hit him.

"Sorry." I winced as I apologized.

"No, don't be sorry. It's good. Just, next time we'll use something other than my face as a target." He chuckled. "I think we're done for today, let's go take showers."

He took my hand and pulled me along with him through the house. We passed Alice and Jasper in the living room watching some cooking show, but they didn't say anything to us. Alice gave me a meaningful look, though, her eyes darting from me to Edward several times, shaking her head up and down rapidly. Jasper elbowed her and raised an eyebrow.

I suppressed a laugh and followed Edward up the stairs to our room.

"You take a shower first." He said, sitting down in the chair with a bottle of water he got from our mini fridge.

I went ahead and did as he suggested, going in and taking the best shower I've ever had - swear to God. The hot water and pulsing shower heads were like dozens of little fingers on my sore muscles.

I was reluctant to even get out, but I felt bad keeping this little piece of heaven to myself. So I slowly got out after I made sure the shampoo was rinsed out of my hair and wrapped myself up in a towel.

When I walked out, Edward was sprawled across the bed, still in the same clothes, half asleep with with his arms thrown about his head.

_He looks so cute..._

"Ummm... Edward?" I shook him by the shoulder.

"Yeah?" He mumbled groggily.

"You can take your shower now." I said.

I was trying to ignore the way his shorts rode low on his hips, even laying down.

"I don't wanna." Edward grumbled.

I snickered at his childish behavior.

He wasn't looking at me, so I felt free to drop my towel and quickly threw on one of his shirts with a pair of sleep shorts underneath. Taking a few calming breaths, I walked over to the bed and stood beside him.

"Edward?" I asked softly.

He doesn't say anything, but rolls over toward me and cracks his eyes open. I see the moment he realizes that I'm standing so close in nothing but his shirt. He probably can't see my shorts because the shirt is so long on me.

"Bella?" He questioned, fully awake now.

"Can we try something?" I whispered.

He starts to sit up, but I stop him with a hand on his shoulder, nudging him back down. He lets me do what I want, lets me control the situation. Slowly, I throw my leg over him and sit down on his stomach.

"What do you want to try?" Edward asked, his voice strained.

"I want to see how far I can go... you know." I mumbled, embarrassed.

"Okay, we can do that, but you set the boundaries here. Everything. I don't make a move until you say _yes_. We can stop whenever you want, no matter what we're doing. If you feel even the slightest bit scared or nervous, say something." Edward told me.

I smiled at his words, knowing and trusting that Edward would never do anything I was even slightly nervous about.

"Kissing. Just start out with kissing." I said, biting into my lip.

"Anything." He murmured, brushing his thumb over my cheek.

I leaned down and brushed my lips against his, falling into our pattern of lips and tongues working together, making us moan and whimper into each others mouths.

"You're so beautiful." Edward whispered, detaching our mouths and ducking down to kissing my neck softly.

My breath caught a little and I moaned as he kissed the sensitive spot right below my ear.

"I don't feel beautiful sometimes. Not anymore." I admitted, slightly breathless.

"You are. You're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen. Everything from your hair to your painted toe nails. Inside and out." He said between kisses all over my neck and chest, stopping once he had his lips directly over my heart.

I felt warmth spreading inside me at his words, making me completely relax into his still sweaty chest.

His fingertips carefully slid under the hem of my shirt before freezing and looking into my eyes.

"Is this okay?" He asked.

I nodded my head, not taking my eyes off his. His fingers ghosted across my thighs, pushing the shirt up inch by inch until it was bunched up around my waist.

Edward's hands ran up and down my thighs, trying to make sure I was used to the feeling before going any further.

"Don't stop yet." I whispered.

He hesitated for a few seconds before slowly continuing his path, coming to a final stop at my waist.

"Good?" He murmured.

I nodded and reattached my lips to his. I wanted to go as far as possible while I still had the courage.

We continued kissing, only breaking away when there was a need for air, and even then we busied our lips against each others skin. I was starting to get frustrated because Edward was very good at keeping his erection away from me.

"Edward... please." I whined into his neck, trying to grind myself against him, but his grip on my hips was holding me in place.

It seemed like he just gave up after that, suddenly flipping us over and I felt him, hard and hot pressing into me.

That was the worst thing he could possibly do, because I wasn't as ready as I thought I was.

I let out a little gasp as he thrust against me again and I was immediately assaulted with images of Alistair over me, pining me down and grinding himself into me.

"No!" I yelled, trying to pull away from him. Hands and lips were instantly gone and the next thing I hear is Edward's voice in my ear, repeating something over and over again, but I couldn't make it out. Blood was rushing through my ears, making a whooshing sound that downed everything else out and I was trying to keep from hyperventilating.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. It's okay, Bella. It's just me. It's just me, angel. I won't hurt you, I'm sorry." Edward's voice finally processed in my mind.

I wrapped my arms around him and cried into his neck. He gently brought his arms up to wrap around my torso and held me to him, rocking me back and forth.

* * *

**Tsk, tsk. Those two are moving too fast. What are they going to do now? Bella still has quite a ways to go.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN Twilight!**

* * *

**BPOV**

Things had gotten worse since last night.

I had cried the rest of the night until I finally fell asleep in Edward's arms. He felt horrible, moping around all morning and barely even talking to me.

I knew Edward well enough that I could tell he was beating himself up about last night. It wasn't really his fault though, I was the one who pushed. I wanted to see how far I could go and I'd paid the price for my stupidity.

Leah had called Carlisle early this morning, saying that she had a family emergency and couldn't see me again until next week.

It looked like I was on my own with this one.

I was sulking on the couch with Cheese in my lap and the Titanic on the TV when Esme came in with the phone.

"Bella, it's your mom." She told me softly, handing it me.

I sighed, realizing I'd forgotten to call her before lunch.

"Hey mom." I greeted, trying to sound happier than I am.

"Bella, you forgot to call. I was worried." She complained.

"Sorry. It's just things are a little busy around here." No need to elaborate.

"Well are you okay? Do you want to come home yet?" She pressed, hope in her voice.

She'd been trying to get me to go back for days now, but I was determined to stay here with Edward and the Cullen's.

"Mom, I don't want to go back. I'm fine here. This is my home now." I told her more firmly than I'd intended.

"Oh baby... I just miss you so much." She said sadly.

I breathed through my mouth slowly, trying not to snap at her. She hadn't done anything wrong, it was just one of those days and I didn't need my mother trying to guilt trip me into going back to Forks.

"Mom, I love you, but I'm an adult now, not your little girl. I have a life of my own and I can't just leave it. I'm needed here and this is where I want to be." I tried to explain.

"I guess I understand." She said wistfully.

_Ugh... I need to get off the phone. _

"Mom, I'll call you tomorrow, I've got to go." I said.

"Alright sweetie, I suppose I'll talk to you then." She said and hung up.

Thank god.

I needed to find a way to deal with Edward and my mother harping on me was not helping matters.

I threw the phone onto the couch and picked up Cheese, holding him up level with my face. His little golden eyes looked back at me with curiosity and he meowed softly.

"What am I going to do?" I asked rhetorically, fully aware the cat couldn't talk back to me.

Cheese just meowed again and tried to lick my hand.

"You're good for listening, but not good for giving advise." I mumbled, putting him back down on my lap.

"Well maybe I can give you advise?" Maggie's voice asked from behind me. I turned around on the couch to see her standing in the doorway, her bright red hair in a disheveled bun on top of her head. "Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop, I was just passing through when I heard."

"I don't know if you can help me with this problem." I said.

"Well, can you talk to Edward about it?" She asked, taking another few steps into the room.

"It's kind of about him." I told her.

"Ahhh... one of those." Maggie sighed. "Are you sure I can't help with anything?" She asked again.

I bit my lip, thinking if I could tell her what the problem was. It was just us girls, and though she's not Rose or Alice, I can still trust her.

"Okay, sit down." I invited her over.

Once she was settled down beside me, I turned to her and started spilling my guts. "Edward and I tried to go further... _sexually_... and it didn't go so well. I basically had a breakdown and spent all of last night crying. Now Edward won't even touch me and he's just wandering around all depressed and I don't know what to do."

I took a deep breath now that my mini rant was over and looked expectantly at Maggie.

"Have you tried talking about what happened?" She asked.

"Yes, but he won't listen. I think he likes beating himself up. It's like I've given him an excuse." I sighed.

"Edward has this little habit of going into his own world when he's upset. He needs to sort all of this out for himself, just give it a while. He can't stay away from you forever." She giggled, trying to make me feel better.

"You're right. I just worry that he's going to do something stupid because he thinks he fucked up." I said.

"It's Edward; he does something stupid weekly." Maggie scoffed. "But seriously, are you okay?" She asked.

"I'm good now. It was just a shock, all those memories about what happened coming back up to the surface." I told her quietly.

"That bastard won't ever hurt you again." She startled me by the utter seriousness in her voice. "Even if I have to put a bullet in his brain myself."

I gaped at her for a moment, words failing me. "You… umm…"

"Just know that you mean a lot to more than just Edward." Maggie said and stood up. "Wait a little while for Edward to pull his shit together, then you can talk to him."

I watched as she walked out of the room, leaving me once again in silence. I huffed and sunk down into the couch, thinking about how I was going to approach Edward in a way that would make him listen.

It seemed I didn't have to wait long, because a little less than a half an hour later, Edward himself walked in, the ever present look of guilt plastered across his face and a box of something in his hands.

"Hello." I said softly, not wanting to scare him away like he was some wild animal.

"Hey." He mumbled back.

"What's that?" I asked, pointing to the box.

"It's a present." He told me simply and finally started to walk toward me.

Edward slowly held out the box and I grabbed it from him, setting it on the couch next to me. It wasn't very big, nearly flat like a jewelry case, and red.

"What's it for? I didn't know it was Christmas already." I tried to joke, but he didn't find anything funny.

"Just open it, please." He said.

I was a little taken aback by his cool attitude with me, but did as he said and lifted the lid on the box. For once in my life I wish it was jewelry.

Inside was a one way ticket to Seattle, Washington.

I felt like I'd just been punched in the stomach.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" I asked, throwing down the box.

"You need to go home, Bella. See your parents, get away from all the madness… away from me." Edward said almost robotically.

"No." I said defiantly.

"Please… don't fight me on this." He whispered.

"I'm not going to see my parents. And I was under the impression that this was my home." I said coolly. "You can't just send me off the moment I have a small breakdown-"

"You call that a small breakdown!" Edward interrupted, showing the first sign of real life. "For fuck sake Bella, I held you for seven hours while you sobbed into my chest! You need to be somewhere that you can get real help and not have to deal with all of the drama that comes with being here."

"So this is it?" I practically snarl at him. "I breakdown and cry and you send me away? I love you with every fiber of my being, I stand beside you through all of this shit, I spend a month looking for you and praying to whatever God would listen that I would find you alive, I sit by your bedside and listen to you tell me you love me and would never hurt me… and I have one weak moment and you're shipping me off?"

Edward stared at me sadly before shaking his head.

"The flight doesn't leave until tomorrow morning, so you've got the rest of the day to pack." He effectively dismissed me and turned to leave.

At least that's what he thought.

I decided to try another tactic. This was going to be a bit below the belt and I might regret it later, but it's the last weapon in my arsenal.

"I can't leave, it's only been five months." I said.

He turned slowly and gave me a questioning look. "What?"

"We made a deal that I had to stay with you for six months as a way to pay you back for buying me." I reminded him.

His face darkened and I knew immediately I was right about regretting it.

"Fine then!" He yelled, making me jump back. "Fucking stay here and be emotionally damaged for the rest of your life! I'll be the one to leave! I'll be gone in an hour!"

I watched, flabbergasted as he stormed off.

"What the hell is going on in here?" Emmett asked, coming in a little late.

"Emmett, do you want me to leave?" I asked him thickly, holding back the tears.

"Wha- Like leave the room?" He asked, confused.

"No, like; leave here and go back to my parents." I said.

"What did that little shit do?" He growled.

"He bought me a one way ticket to Seattle and told me to leave." I whispered.

"I'll kill him." Emmett grumbled.

I didn't try to stop him when he stomped out of the room, presumably to go find Edward. Instead, I sat back down and carefully picked up the discarded ticket.

_At least it's first class. _That snarky little voice in my head sneered.

I threw the ticket away from me and grabbed a pillow, bringing it to my face and releasing a scream into it.

I tried to reason with myself that Edward wasn't being Edward, that he was having his own form of a breakdown.

_Does he really want me to go so badly that he was going to leave if I didn't?_

I could hear a bunch of thudding and voices coming from the other room, and the next thing I knew Edward was being dragged by a very angry Emmett into the room. He unceremoniously threw Edward into the table, making me gasp as Em pulled out a gun and pointed it at Edward.

"I told you that if you ever made Bella cry again, it would be your ass." Emmett said coldly, making chills run up my spine. I'd never seen him be so… un-Emmett.

Edward glared at him and I could practically see the fire coming out of his nostrils.

"Where do you want me to shoot you?" Emmett continued.

"Don't shoot him!" I yelled, stepping between Edward and the gun.

Em instantly lowered it and focused his eyes on me. "Belly B, move please. I've got to teach my dumbass brother a lesson."

"You. Are. Not. Shooting. Edward." I punctuated every word with finger in his barreled chest.

"Oh my God." This time it was Esme that came in, seeing what was happening between the three of us. "Do not shoot that gun in my house!"

"I just want her to go home so she can get better." Edward finally spoke, ignoring his mother.

"I am home, Edward." I cried. "No matter how much you try to push me away, I'm not leaving, because I know you'll regret it later. This is just some idea you've gotten in your head, thinking it'll protect me."

"Think about it man, do you really want Bella to leave? You'd never see her again. You'd never be able to hold her, or talk to her, or tell her how sorry you are for being such a jackass." Emmett said, more calmly now.

Edward's eyes moved from glaring at Emmett, to softening as they met mine.

"Em, could you please leave? I think I've got this." I asked.

"Just yell if he gives you any more trouble. I can shoot him in the leg so he can't run." He joked before leaving, taking Esme with him.

"Do you really want me to leave? And not just because you think it'll be better for me?" I asked softly, walking toward him.

"It feels like someone's ripping my heart out every time I think about it." He answered, looking down.

"Then please don't make me leave." I pleaded, tears rolling down my cheeks. "I need you, Edward. I love you. You are the only thing that's keeping me from crawling into a hole and dying."

He stood up from the table and began pacing, tugging on his hair and cursing under is breath.

"I just want you to be somewhere better! Where you don't have to flinch or cry when one of us does something wrong. It broke me to see you like that… because of something I did." He said.

I sighed and grabbed his hand, pulling him over to the couch with me.

"Edward, I didn't have my breakdown because of you." I started. Edward gave me a look that said he clearly wasn't convinced, but I went on. "It wasn't you. It was all the memories of… of him. I was the one that wanted us to go farther in the first place. If anything this is my fault. I should have known better, that I wasn't ready for the next step yet."

"It's not your fault either, angel." He said, leaning in slowly until his forehead was resting against mine.

"And I am getting better. You should have seen me the first couple weeks, Esme couldn't even get near me." I laughed tightly.

"That's not funny." Edward said dryly.

"Yeah… But you see where I'm going with this? I can actually have people - men - touch me and not freak out." I smiled at him. "You can hold me and kiss me… we just can't do all that other stuff yet. It'll take some time, just like getting this far has taken time. I just need to know that you won't have a major freak out of your own and put me on a plane every time I have a problem."

"Fuck…" He groaned and buried his face in my shoulder. "I over reacted, didn't I?"

"Just a little." I said softly.

"Can you forgive me? For everything?" Edward asked. "I'm sorry, angel. I really am. I just want you to be safe."

"I feel safe when I'm with you." I whispered against his hair. "And of course I forgive you, just don't do it again or I'll let Emmett shoot you."

Edward finally cracked a smile.

"And I'm sorry for bringing up the thing…" I trailed off.

"It's alright, I just kind of thought you'd forgotten about it. How much of an asshole I was." He winced.

"Oh you weren't an asshole, you just didn't know how to get a girl to stay in your bed." I teased.

"Haha." Edward snorted.

"Do I need to shoot somebody?" Emmett hollered from another room.

"No!" I yelled back.

"I'm sorry." Edward apologized again, kissing my cheek. "I love you, angel. I'm sorry I was such an asshole."

"You really don't want me to leave?" I asked again, feeling very much like a whiny girlfriend.

"I don't even want you leaving this couch, let alone the county." He smirked.

"Then can we get rid of the plane ticket?" I asked, glancing at the ticket laying on the floor like it was something offensive.

Without another word, Edward got up and grabbed the ticket, tearing it apart into about twenty pieces and tossed it all in the trash.

"Better?" He asked, sitting back on the couch with me and pulling me into his lap.

I nodded and rested my head against his chest, feeling physically and emotionally drained.

"I'm tired." I told him softly.

"Then go to sleep, sweetheart." He said.

"You'll be here when I wake up?" I asked, unable to forget him saying that he'd leave.

Edward made sad sound in the back of his throat and nodded.

"I'll be here, angel. I promise." He whispered.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

"Bella… angel, wake up." A voice whispered in my ear.

I felt fingertips caress my cheek and I reluctantly opened my eyes. Edward was kneeling on the floor beside the couch, looking at me with a small frown on his face.

"What's wrong?" I asked through a yawn.

"Ben and Jasper found a possible hit on Alistair, so we're going to check it out." He told me.

"Oh my god, really?" I sat up, suddenly quite alert.

"Yes, and you're not coming with us." Edward warned.

_Damn it… he knows me too well._

I frowned, but the severe look on Edward's face made me think twice about arguing with him.

"What are you going to do if you find him?" I asked.

"I was thinking about ripping his dick off and shoving it down his throat until he choked to death on it." He said nonchalantly.

"Well that seems… fitting." I managed to say.

Somehow, I wasn't as shocked or appalled as I thought I should be. In fact, I kind of liked Edward's idea. God… that shows how sick I am.

"Make sure you be safe. I don't want anymore gunshot wounds on you." I told him.

"I'll try baby, I'll try." He said, kissing me quickly before leaving.

I listened carefully as garage door opened and they left. I wished I could have gone with them, so I could at least watch as Edward tortured the bastard. Hell, I wanted to do it myself.

"Bella, you okay?" Rose came in and asked.

I tried to put on a smile for her, but it didn't work so well. "Yeah, I'm good."

"They'll be fine. Maybe they'll even bring that bastard back alive so we can torture him a little… get some revenge." Rose said almost wistfully.

"I wish." I muttered.

Rose sat with me, watching the new Pirates of The Caribbean movie. Honestly, it just wasn't the same without Orlando Bloom, but other than that I didn't mind it.

It was nearly one o'clock pm when it ended and I was really starting to worry about the guys.

"They haven't called yet?" Rose asked Alice, who shook her head.

"How bad is this?" I asked them.

"Well, either they're having fun torturing people, or…" Rose trailed off, looking around awkwardly.

Or they're dead.

"Why don't all of you go to bed?" Esme suggested.

_You expect me to sleep when Edward is out there, possibly laying dead somewhere?_

Maggie was the first to go up, completely content since her man was sitting in the basement with all his computer equipment. I couldn't help but glare at her as she skipped up the stairs.

"I heard about the little stunt Edward tried to pull earlier." Rose quipped.

"Emmett and I took care of it." I told her. "He just panicked and thought that sending me off to my parents would be good for me."

"Well he's a butt-hole. I swear, Edward doesn't think before he opens his big mouth half the time." She grumbled.

"He's just worried about me." I said.

Rose hummed and didn't look too pleased, but didn't say anything else, choosing to sip on her coffee.

I finally got fed up of just waiting around and went up to take a shower, willing to try anything to get my mind off all the things that could have gone wrong. It didn't work though.

When I got in, all I could think about what Edward might be doing. Had he found Alistair? Had he killed him? Was Edward dead himself? Why hadn't they called in like they told Rose and Alice they would?

Growling to myself, I hurriedly washed the soap suds off my body and got out of the shower, wrapping up tightly in a towel. I was drying off and about to put my pajama shorts on when I heard banging and muffled voices coming from downstairs.

I frowned and quickly dressed in my sleep shorts and one of Edward's t-shirts, sneaking down the hallway until I came to the stair banister.

I could see Rose down in the living room, pacing around and looking worried about something.

"Rose… what's going on?" I asked her, coming down the stairs.

"Oh God! I thought you went to bed!" She exclaimed, ignoring my question.

"I was just about to, but I heard some weird sounds down here." I said, crossing my arms. "Is Edward back?"

"Yeah they're back." She nodded her head, clearly not giving me anymore info for some reason.

More of the thumping sounds came from the basement and I could make out Emmett saying something.

"What are they doing down there?" I asked, pointing at the floor.

Rose sighed and her shoulders slumped.

"I can't keep anything from you! Edward was freaking insane thinking I could! It's like trying to lie to a puppy!" She yelled at herself.

"What?" I asked, confused as hell.

"When they got there, Alistair wasn't there, but one of his very close associates was." She explained carefully.

"Okay… so what's the big deal?" I wondered. If it was just some random guy that worked with Alistair, why would Edward tell Rose not to say anything to me?

"It's uh… well… Don't freak out; it's under control. He's tied up nice and tight downstairs and very bloody thanks to Edward. It's James. They found James." She stumbled through her words.

I froze, blood draining from my face the second I heard the name _James_.

"He's in the house!" I shouted.

"Shhh!" Rose hushed, clamping a hand over my mouth.

"Rosalie! What the hell are they doing with him here?" I asked, a bit quieter.

"They're trying to get information out of him. Edward didn't want me to say anything to because he doesn't want you panicking." She said.

"So he told you to lie to me?" I was getting angry now.

"Not _lie_… more like just not saying anything." She said simply, like that fixed everything.

"Oh… Bella…" Ben appeared through the basement door, quickly closing it behind him.

"Ben, could you please go get Edward for me?" I asked sweetly, batting my eyelashes and giving him a shy smile.

He blushed just like I knew he would and nodded, going right back into the basement.

"That is just wrong." Rose commented.

Not a minute went by before Edward came through the door, looking extremely guilty.

"Hey, angel." He said, coming over to hug me.

"Do not _angel _me." I growled and stepped back. "Aside from the fact that you brought that man inside this house without telling me, you told Rose to lie to me about it."

"It's not lying!" Rose interjected, then wisely chose to walk away.

"She said you were asleep. I figured that we'd have him out of here by morning." Edward said.

"Then you'd keep on lying to me." I said.

"I would have told you about it eventually! When he was gone…" He trailed off.

"I'm sorry I'm being a bit of a bitch about this-"

"Don't call yourself that." Edward interrupted.

"- But it would have been nice for you to come up and tell me that you were alive so I wasn't worrying all night. And the little detail that a man that is kind of obsessed with me is in our basement would have been nice to know!" I told him, trying not to raise my voice too much.

"Wait, you thought I was dead?" He asked, looking very concerned now.

"Yes! Rose said you were supposed to call four hours ago! That leads one to believe you are dead or close to being dead." I snapped.

"Fuck! I'm so sorry! We forgot about that!" Edward rubbed his face.

"You two fight like an old married couple." Alice commented, walking down the stairs.

"James is tied up in the basement!" I told her.

She gasped and froze on the staircase. "Edward Cullen! What the hell were you thinking?"

"I was thinking that I couldn't exactly take him anywhere else to get information out of him." He told her.

"So you bring him into our house?" Alice asked, smacking his arm.

"Edward! We need you down here!" Jasper called up.

"Can we talk about this later?" Edward asked both of us.

"Fine." I grumbled and walked off.

"Don't be mad." He came after me and gently grabbed my wrist.

"I'm not mad, not really, I'm just… I don't like him being here. And I don't like you not telling me about it." I said.

"I'm sorry. You're right, I should have at least warned you." He apologized.

"Are you sure he can't get away?" I nearly whimpered.

"He's tied up and injured, he's not going anywhere." He reassured me.

"Can I… could I see him?" I asked quietly.

A look of bewilderment crossed his face and I rushed to explain. "Maybe if I could see him, see that he's not a threat, it'll be better."

Edward thought for a moment, sighing and cursing under his breath.

"You can come down, but you stay behind me, and if he says anything to you, just ignore it." He instructed me.

"Alright." I nodded.

I grabbed for his hand and let him pull me to the basement door. As soon as he opened it, I could clearly hear Emmett threatening who I assumed to be James, with something much similar to what Edward wanted to do to Alistair.

Edward kept me behind him as we walked down, shielding me from James's line of vision, but as I peaked around Edward's arm, I could see him.

James was a mess; his blonde hair ragged with blood, his face looked like it had met a brick wall a few times, and he was tied securely to a chair in the middle of the room. He wasn't at all like the confident man I'd bumped into while shopping with Alice and Rose. No fake charming smiles and glint in his eyes.

Jasper was sitting in front of him in a chair of his own, staring James down.

"Just tell us where Alistair is and we'll make this quick." Jasper said calmly, like they were having lunch.

"I don't think so." James practically wheezed out.

"Then we'll have to try a different approach." Edward said coldly, pulling a gun out of his waistband.

I hadn't even noticed he had a gun on him.

"Do you want to go back upstairs now?" Edward murmured to me.

"Well if it isn't our little film star." James cut in, finally noticing me.

I narrowed my eyes at him, wondering what the hell he was talking about.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked bravely, resisting the urge to shrink away behind Edward.

"Oh? You haven't found out yet?" He asked mockingly. "There are quite a few videos of you in that cozy little room."

My face paled and I inched closer to Edward. Videos? Alistair was recording me in there the entire time? I hadn't noticed any cameras, the room was pretty sparse, so it would be hard to hide a normal video camera without it being noticed.

"Shut your mouth." Jasper warned him.

"I watched some of them, too." James continued, obviously having no sense. "I have a favorite, though… Got me so fucking hard watching him fuck you." James grinned.

Before I could utter a word, Edward aimed his gun and fired, shooting James right between the legs.

"You wanna say that again?" Edward roared.

"Oh fuck! Shit! Shit! Fuck! God damn it! You just shot me in the dick!" James screamed.

"You've always had amazing aim, Eddie." Emmett chuckled over the screams.

All I could do was stand there, torn between being sick and cheering Edward on.

"Go back upstairs." Edward told me, pushing me a little toward the stairs.

I didn't have to be told twice. I ran up the stairs, nearly tripping over my own feet. Slamming the door shut behind me, I ran straight to the bathroom and barely made it to the toilet before my dinner came back up.

* * *

**Poor Bella! Anyone else just want to give her a hug? Yeah, Edward almost pulled what I call a 'New Moon', but Emmett and his big gun shut that down really quick. And Bella did stand up to him, so that's good progress for her.**

**Edward shooting James in the dick? You like? I like.**

**You can find me on Facebook under Malin Halibell. **

**I love reviews like I love a gun carrying Edward…**


	8. Chapter 8

***Warning: There's some light torture involving James, which some of you may like.**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN Twilight!**

* * *

**EPOV**

I waited until Bella's feet disappeared up the stairs and the door slammed shut behind her before turning back to James.

"Now, where the hell is Alistair?" I growled, shifting the gun in my hand.

James was still screaming his fucking head off about me shooting his dick. I suppose it wasn't the greatest idea if we wanted to get information out of him, but it was the first place I thought of after he said those things to Bella. He's lucky I didn't shoot him in the fucking head.

"You think I'm telling you shit?" James howled.

"Yes." I said simply, folding my arms. "You know why I think that? Because if you don't, we're going to spend all night down here, torturing it out of you."

"Good luck." He grunted.

I frowned down at him, taking in this pathetic man. I didn't even care about what he'd done to my company back in Brazil. He could have taken every single cent I owned, it didn't matter now that Bella was in my life. The moment he threatened her and brought her into all of this, things changed.

"Jasper, hand me the pliers." I held out my hand and not five second later it's filled. "Normally, I'd start with your teeth, but I figure you're having a hard enough time talking, so I'm going to switch thing up a bit."

I slowly walk around him until I'm standing right behind him, reaching down to grasp one of his tied up hands, I pry his fingers open.

"Do you have something you'd like to tell me?" I asked.

"Fuck off!" He snarled.

I hum and begin my work. Grabbing a hold of the end of a fingernail with the pliers, I slowly pull back, ripping his nail off. I pay no attention to his screams as I go for another nail. I'm on the fourth nail before he begins screaming for me to stop.

I pause, waiting to hear the words I want come out of his mouth.

"I… I do-don't know w-where he is… fuck!" He nearly cried out.

_Not good enough. He's got to know something._

"I don't believe you." I said before going for his fifth nail.

"He doesn't tell me shit!" James screamed.

"I think someone's lying…" Emmett sang.

I sighed and sat back on my heels, trying not to look down at the gross, bloody fingernails laying on the floor next to me.

"You do realize that you have another hand, and two feet that I can keep doing this to, right?" I asked rhetorically.

"I… I can't say anything - he'll kill me." James said.

"_I'll _kill you if you don't say anything." I told him.

"F-Fuck! … Look, all I know is that he's gonna be somewhere that little druggie bitch of his wanted to go in Veria! They didn't give me any details!" He cried out.

"Hey, didn't Maggie…" Jasper trailed off.

I nodded at Jasper, telling him I understood.

Maggie and Bree had lived in Veria, a small city a half hour away from Athens, with their mother when they were younger, but I didn't think Alistair would be stupid enough to let her talk him into going back to such an obvious place.

"I don't think we're going to get much more out of him, are we?" I asked Em and Jasper.

"Yeah… I think that's all he knows." Emmett said nonchalantly.

"Take care of it, will you?" I asked, standing up fully, ignoring the bloody mess before me.

"Wh-What?" James stuttered, but we all didn't pay any attention.

"You don't want to do it yourself?" Jasper asked.

"No, I need to go check on Bella." I told him, heading for stairs.

I climbed up them swiftly, eager to make sure Bella was alright. She didn't look so good before she left the basement. I went straight up to our bedroom, but she wasn't there. I checked the bathroom, she wasn't there. Now I was starting to worry a little.

I quickly walked down the hallway, ready to start yelling out her name, when I caught her voice wafting out of Rose and Emmett's room.

Slowly going over to the half open door, I saw Rose and Bella sitting on the bed. Bella had tears running down her face that Rose was unsuccessfully trying to wipe away.

"There are tapes!" I heard Bella cry. "He recorded me the entire time I was in that room. He recorded himself raping me!"

My heart ripped open at her words and I pressed my mouth against the door frame to keep quiet. I could see Rose's eyes widen at Bella's words and she pulled Bella to her chest, wrapping her arms around her and began rocking back a forth.

"Oh sweetie…" Rose breathed out, her voice colored with pain and sympathy.

"I just want it to be over! Why can't it be over?" She cried into Rose's shoulder, making my heart crack a little more. "Why can't we just find him and kill him already? I don't care how sick it may be; I want to watch Edward torture that bastard and kill him! Hell, I want to do it myself! I want for him to know what it feels like, to be humiliated and violated and damaged so much that you can't have anyone touch you!"

"First off, you're not damaged." Rose told her strongly, making me smile weakly. "Second, Edward will find him and when he does, you can have a go at the bastard. You'll get your revenge."

I waited silently as Rose finished talking to Bella, trying to tamper down my urge to go to her immediately. She just saw me shoot a guy in the junk - that's not the best thing to do to get her to warm up to me. I'm just thankful the basement is soundproofed or she would have heard James screaming his head off.

Heading back to our room, I lay on the bed as I hear Bella's light footsteps come down the hall. Her tearstained face peeks in first and her eyes land right on me.

"Hi." She whispered roughly.

"Hey." I whispered back.

"Did you uh… _finish _with James?" She asked carefully, playing with her hands.

"He gave us some information we can use." Is all I tell her, not willing to divulge any of the ugly details.

"That's good." She brightens up a little.

"Come here, please?" I request softly, holding my arms open.

Bella gladly crawls into bed next to me, snuggling into my side with her head resting my chest. I can feel her faster than normal heartbeat against my ribs and I squeeze her a little tighter, a subconscious effort to assure both of us.

"Bella, I need to know something - and I'm sorry I didn't stop to think before I did it. Did me shooting James scare you? You didn't look so good." I told her, gently smoothing my fingertips across her hairline.

"No, _that _wasn't what scared me." She said. "There are tapes of the things he did to me! I don't want people seeing that! James saw it, god knows who else he's shown it to! He can do whatever he wants with those!"

"He can't do a lot with them, at least nothing legal." I tried to assure her. "He can't sell them to any newspapers or reporters, because then he'll have to admit to how he got the tape to begin with, plus it shows him hurting you. If he tries to go public with them at all, he'll get caught. The most he can do is show them around to a few of his friends for sick kicks."

Bella didn't say anything else, clearly exhausted.

"Why don't you go to sleep? There's nothing we can do now, just try to get some sleep." I whispered to her.

"What are you going to do about your new information?" She asked.

I hesitated.

It would be better if we acted now, there would be a better chance that he'd still be in Veria. It was only about a half hour away from where we are. Though we couldn't get a decent team together in such a short time, so it would just be me, Em, Jasper, and maybe Carlisle.

Definitely risky.

We could wait until tomorrow, but we couldn't strike in the middle of the day, especially in a city like Veria, so we'd have to wait even longer until it was dark.

That just wouldn't do.

"I don't know yet, angel. I've got to go down and talk to the guys, but I'll be back up in a little while. Go to sleep without me." I said, cringing inside as I lied to her.

Bella frowned up at me a little, but nodded, moving off my chest to snuggle into one lucky ass pillow instead. I kissed her goodnight, lingering in the bed a little before getting up and wandering back downstairs, weary of this entire situation.

I should have killed Alistair long before all this happened. Back when I was reluctantly doing business with him, he'd gotten on my nerves several times and ignored the rules we abided by. Alistair never had cared about women, viewing them as little disposable toys to be played with and thrown away whenever he wanted. The only woman I'd ever seen him get close to really caring about was Bree, and even she walked a very fine line around him.

I knew he had smacked her around in the beginning and Em and I didn't like it, but we kept our mouths shut. There was nothing we could do about it, Bree didn't want to leave him and we couldn't make her. We couldn't exactly call the cops on him, either. Though I wasn't so willing to be quiet when one day he started beating Maggie.

Maggie had been a sweet girl who followed her sister into the fiery pits of hell. Partly because she wanted to keep watch over Bree and partly because she had no other place to go. She was quiet, stayed out of the way, and helped when she was needed. She hadn't deserved Alistair's wrath.

I could tell Maggie had crush on me back then, how could she not? It was almost like Stockholm Syndrome. When everyone else around her were being assholes and screaming and beating her, I was the one that jumped in and saved her. I stopped Alistair from beating her several times, often letting her stay with me. I figured out of sight, out of mind.

Em and I got out just before Alistair's brother got caught and arrested, bringing the whole system down with him. I convinced Maggie to apply to a few colleges, try to get a new start, and she got into Oxford University. She tried to talk me into trying a relationship with her, but I just couldn't do it. Maggie had become like a little sister to me, I thought it would be like trying to date Alice or Rose.

Ew.

I had explained that to her as nicely as possible and she looked disappointed, but excepted my reasoning, going off to start her life in England. I hadn't seen her much since, once in a while she'd come by for a weekend and we'd go out for a show or have dinner, stuff like that. It was one hell of a surprise when I heard what she'd done to help with Bella's rescue, but I was extremely grateful.

But I didn't want her to get sucked back in with Alistair. I knew she wouldn't go of her own free will, but Bree was still with him, and from what Bella told me, she's worse than ever. Maggie was only stupid when it came to her sister and it was something Alistair knew. Leave it to him to use Bree in some sick game.

All the more reason to find and kill the bastard.

When I entered the basement, there was no sign of what I'd done to James just under an hour ago. Emmett and Jasper were nowhere to be seen, so they were probably still out getting rid of James.

Ben was still here, though. He was bent over his computer, his glasses pushed all the way up his nose and his hair was a mess. There was a large bottle of Dr. Pepper and a bag of Twizzlers on the desk beside him.

"What did you find?" I asked him.

"Shhhhh!" He hissed at me, not even looking up.

_I can't believe Maggie likes this nerd… Even Bella thinks he's 'adorable'. He's not a fucking puppy._

"Got it!" Ben yelled the next second, jumping out of his chair in what seemed to be victory.

"What did you get?" I asked.

"It wasn't that hard to find him. I just looked up Maggie's address from when she lived there, zeroed in on that area - a good thirty mile radius - and had the computer go through cameras set up within that radius, hitting on anyone that looks like Alistair or Bree with the facial recognition program. It's so basic…" Ben shook his head, a smile on his face.

I rolled my eyes, in no mood for him to gloat about being a computer genus.

"And?" I prompted.

"_And _I managed to make a trail of sorts, following him through the camera sightings to a small warehouse just inside the city limits of Veria. I've already emailed all the details to your, Emmett and Jasper's phones. Have fun." He sat back down in his swivel chair and started chewing on a Twizzler.

"Thank you." I said, pulling my phone out of my pocket.

Sure enough, I opened my email and everything from directions, to what color the warehouse was appeared on the screen. I had to admit, no matter how annoying Ben got with that damn computer sometimes, he's damn good at what he does.

I went back up to the main floor, anxious for Emmett and Jasper to get back.

"What's wrong, son?" Carlisle came out of the kitchen. I was surprised to see him down here at this time of night, but didn't say anything about it.

"We managed to get some information out of James." I told him.

"Yes. Emmett recounted it to me, quite graphically." He shook his head at what was probably Emmett's embellishments.

"You know I don't enjoy doing those types of things." I muttered defensively.

"I know, but I have a feeling that you didn't exactly mind inflicting pain on the man, either." Carlisle said.

"Touché." I agreed.

"What are you going to do now?" He asked.

"Ben found where Alistair is at now, so we should probably leave soon. I was going to ask if you'd come along, give us some back up just in case." I told him.

"Sure, sure. I'll just have to tell your mother. She won't like me going out like this…" He trailed off, heading for their room.

I smiled as I watched him go, wondering if one day that could be me and Bella. I remember my slip up yesterday about marrying her. It wasn't really a slip up, I just didn't want that moment to be when I asked her to marry me. I was figuring maybe in a few months when all of this drama was over with and she was getting better. Instead, I had to go and blurt it out like the idiot I am.

That silly girl thought I didn't want her anymore because of what she'd been forced to go through. I had barely resisted shaking some sense into her. Nothing could make me not want my angel.

A meow caught my attention and I looked down to see Bella's kitten, Cheese, rubbing against my ankle.

_Cheese. _

What a weird name for a cat. I quirked an eyebrow down at it and it looked up at me with these big yellow eyes. I wasn't a cat person at all, finding them annoying, moody creatures that never did anything you wanted. But Bella loved it almost as much as she loved me, so I couldn't hate the thing too much. Hell, I couldn't hate it at all. This little ball of fuzz helped Bella when I couldn't and I wasn't about to hate it for making Bella better.

I frowned as I remembered Bella's reaction when I first saw Cheese, nearly having a panic attack because she thought I was going to take him away from her. Bella could have a god damn llama if it made her happy and I wouldn't complain for one second. Like I was going to take a kitten away from her. What was I - Scrooge?

Cheese was kind of cute. All orange fur and yellow eyes, with a little pink nose. I could feel my insides practically melting and I picked him up.

"You watch Bella while I'm gone, okay?" I felt a little silly talking to a cat, but I'd seen the others doing it.

Cheese just blinked and meowed at me. I chuckled and set him back on the floor carefully, watching as he trotted away toward the stairs.

Emmett and Jasper came in the next second, not looking too thrilled. I knew they didn't like doing any of this more than I did, but we didn't have much of a choice.

"It's done." Jasper told me curtly.

"Thank you." I said.

"So are we going tonight?" Emmett asked.

"I figured that would be best. Carlisle wants to come with us, so that gives us another man, we won't be very outnumbered." I told them.

Just then, Carlisle walks back in, more suitably dressed and tucking a gun into the back of his pants.

"Let's go." He said solemnly.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

Carlisle pulled up just a block away from the warehouse, giving us space to survey the area. None of us could see anyone lurking around, keeping guard. After about twenty minutes of surveillance, we decided it was an all clear and started for the warehouse, weapons drawn and ready.

We snuck along the side of the building, choosing to go in the back instead of charging in the front. There was a low enough window around the back that I peeked into, frowning at what I saw.

_Bree_.

She looked awful, her once full and shiny brown hair was now long and stringy hanging around her, her eyes were sunken in and the skin around them was so dark it looked like she hadn't slept in a week. Her already small clothes were hanging off of her boney frame, almost to the point that she looked anorexic.

_What had he done to this poor girl?_

The moment of sadness I felt for her passed the second I remember what she did and helped Alistair do to Bella. I might have felt sorry for Bree and at one point in time considered her a friend, but nothing was more important to me than my Bella.

My eyes narrowed as I took in the twelve men milling around her in the room, minding their own business and steering clear of Bree. It reminded me once again why she got in with Alistair to begin with. Power. To her, she was important here. No one touched the bosses girl. No matter how horribly Alistair treated her, no one else was allowed to lay a finger on her.

It was just how things worked in this kind of business.

The four of us made our way through the backdoor, no one noticing us along the way. Jasper took aim at one of the men, looking at me for the go ahead.

There wasn't an easy or smooth way to do this. We had silencers on our guns, but once one man got taken out, the others would notice. It was going to come down to who shoots who first.

I nodded and a couple seconds later there was a soft _pop _and the man Jasper had been aiming at dropped to the ground in a lifeless heap.

_Jasper's aim was almost as good as mine._

Two of the men turned toward us, but before they could shoot, Emmett and I took them out just as silently as Jasper.

_Three down, nine to go._

By now, the rest of the men were alerted to our presence and quickly start shooting at us. I barely dodged a bullet that was meant for my head.

"Son of a bitch!" Emmett yelled. I glanced over to see him clamping a hand over his biceps, gritting his teeth.

I moved around the corner and fired, hitting one of the men in the chest and watched as he staggered to the floor.

I saw Bree and a man in the corner; he was standing in front of her in a vain attempt to protect her, shooting at us, but his aim sucked.

Carlisle quickly took the man out, leaving Bree wide open, but I didn't shoot her right away. I wanted to have a little chat.

She turned to run, but I carefully took aim, shooting her in the leg. She dropped to the floor and immediately started to crawl across the room, but she wasn't having any luck. She was too weak.

"Go check out the rest of the place - I've got her." I told them all.

I make my way down the metal staircase, my eyes continuously scanning around me for anymore men.

Bree had turned over so she was sitting up, clutching her bleeding leg. As I approached her, she glared up at me and bared her teeth, trying her best to intimidate me.

It was like seeing a sick, dying cat trying to defend itself.

"Oh Bree…" I breathed out, shaking my head sadly.

"I don't want your damn pity, Edward." She growled at me.

"You've always had my pity, Bree." I told her shortly.

"You can't kill me." She stated calmly, ignoring my comment and heading straight to the point. "You don't have the heart to kill a woman, Edward. You couldn't even stand to see my sister get hit. So I know you can't pull that trigger."

"If this was about five months ago, you'd be right." I said softly. I raised my gun to her, my hand unwavering. "But now… you've helped Alistair hurt the woman I love. You didn't say a word, you didn't take pity on her, you didn't try to help her with anything. All you did was sit there and torment her in your own special little way. You made her take drugs… stood by while Alistair raped her and tortured her. So you're wrong; I can pull this trigger - and I will."

Bree's eyes glazed over in fear as she measured the meaning behind my words. She could tell I wasn't bluffing.

Before she could say another word, I aimed and pulled the trigger, hitting her right between the eyes.

_At least it had been fast and painless. It was more than she deserved._

Her body flopped back onto the cold floor, lifeless… empty.

I felt a pang in my chest from the last minute thought that I'd just killed a woman, but I reminded myself again that she was far from innocent.

I breathed out deeply, looking up to the ceiling, trying to collect my thoughts.

_Alistair… he could be here somewhere. I need to find him._

Without another look at Bree's body, I go in search of the guys, wanting to know what or who they've found.

The place is pretty deserted, giving me an uncomfortable feeling in the pit of my stomach.

_Something's not right._

I turned a corner and spot Em, Jasper and Carlisle walking toward me, obviously not having found anyone of worth.

"Alistair's not here." Jasper told me the moment he spotted me.

I began to really worry now. This had all been way too easy. It's not like him to leave Bree somewhere, without any sign of him, even with some of his men. Something smelled fishy.

The nervous feeling throughout my body was screaming at me to check on Bella, so I grabbed my phone and dialed her phone number, only having to wait two rings before the line picked up. Though she didn't say anything, nothing but dead silence greeted me.

"Bella?" I began to panic that she hadn't answered me yet.

"…. Edward?" Bella's soft voice finally answered, but something was wrong, very wrong. "Edward, someone broke into the house. We think it's… that it's _him_. Rose and Alice are with me, but we didn't have time to get to Esme, Ben and Maggie."

"Where in the house are you?" I asked, pulling my hair in an effort not to scream. I motion for the guys to follow me and I run through the warehouse, not caring if someone sees us coming out of the front. There were more important things at stake here.

"We're in our room. I locked the door, but we can hear them downstairs." She whispered.

"Okay baby, okay… let me talk to Rose for a minute." I breathed out.

"What?" Rose sounded tense, I could tell she was clenching her jaw. Rose was strong, I knew she'd fight, but that could also be a problem. Sure, she was tough, but not even she was a match against multiple men with guns.

"Do you have any weapons?" I asked right away.

"No. I didn't have time to grab anything and Emmett took the gun he usually keeps in the bedside drawer. Unless you count the damn cat as weapon… hey." Rose trailed off.

"Don't even think about it." I heard Bella hiss. I could picture her clutching the furball to her chest, giving Rose the evil eye.

"What? I figured all those sharp claws. Plus he'd be a good distraction; throw him at someone." Rose said to her, totally forgetting I was on the phone with her.

"Focus please!" I yelled.

"Sorry." Rose apologized.

"We're on our way. Stay where you are, no matter what you may hear downstairs." I commanded, jumping into the SUV.

"I know… just please hurry." Rose whispered, sounding not at all like the strong Rosalie I knew.

I could hear her pass the phone back to Bella. "Edward…" She breathed, her voice shaking.

"Bella, angel, I want you to stay on the phone with me, okay? Don't talk, be as quiet as you can, just stay on." I told her.

"Okay." She whispered.

The tires squealed as Carlisle punched the gas, driving as fast as he could. Even going way over the speed limit, it would be a good twenty to thirty minutes before we got there. God knows what could happen by then.

I put my phone on speaker, gripping it so tightly I could hear the casing grind in protest.

"Bella, what's going on now?" I asked gently, trying not to frighten her.

"I don't know… Oh God Edward, I don't know!" She was starting to panic. I could hear Alice in the background saying something to her that calmed her down.

"Shhh… it's okay Bella. Just breathe." I tried to soothe her.

"Ummm… I can hear people - men - talking downstairs. They haven't tried to come up to the second floor yet." She told me quietly.

"Where's Esme?" Carlisle asked, his eyes wide with worry.

"… Downstairs." Bella said reluctantly. "I'm sorry! She was downstairs with Maggie and Ben, I don't know if they hid somewhere of their own."

"It's okay, angel. It's not your fault. There's a panic room downstairs; if you can't hear them downstairs, that probably means that they hid there." I said.

Bella remained quiet after that, the only indicator that she was still on the line was her heavy breathing.

We were still almost twenty minutes away.

"Someone's coming up the stairs." Bella whispered so softly I could hardly hear her.

"Stay quiet, angel. Don't be afraid. If anyone harms a single hair on your head I'll kill them." I growled, my calm demeanor cracking.

"Check all the rooms." I could faintly hear a voice order.

I recognized that voice and so did Bella, because she whimpered into the phone.

Alistair.

That bastard was dead the second I got there.

"Shhhh…" I whispered. Any sound they made that was loud enough could be heard if he was standing just outside the door. "Can you move to the bathroom without making much noise?"

"Yes." She breathed. I waited a few seconds, praying that they weren't noticed inside the room. "Okay, we're in the bathroom."

Good. This would at least put another door between them.

Not a minute later, I heard the bedroom door being kicked in. Bella muffled a squeak.

"No one's here." Someone who wasn't Alistair said.

"Check the bathroom."

I held my breath, violently cursing inside my head.

I could hear the door being banged on, like someone was putting their shoulder into. It only took three tries before I heard it give with a loud crash.

* * *

***cackles insanely* I enjoy giving you these cliffies a little too much. I'm so sorry.**

**And I'll tell you right now, Bella will not be severely harmed. She's already been through a lot and not even I'm that mean.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN Twilight!**

* * *

**BPOV**

I was startled awake by a loud crash, nearly falling out of the bed. My hand felt along Edward's side of the bed, unable to see in the darkness, but he wasn't there. The sheets weren't even warm.

_He hasn't been back to bed._

The only thing I do find in bed is Cheese, in his usual spot on the pillow.

Was it Edward and the other guys making so much noise downstairs? I heard another crashing noise and angry muttering, quickly realizing it wasn't any of the guys.

I scrambled out of bed, turning the lamp on as I went. As I cracked the door open to try to hear better, I saw Rose and Alice running down the hallway toward me.

"Go, go, go!" Rose rushed out, shoving me back in.

"What's wrong?" I gasped.

"Someone's in the house." She breathed out, locking the door behind her.

My breath catches in my throat and I struggle to breathe for a moment. I can tell just by looking at the way they're panicking who broke in.

"It's him isn't it?" I asked in a whisper.

Rose glances at me with a heart wrenching look on her face and nods, telling me what I feared.

_Alistair is in my house… he's only a few dozen feet away… and Edward isn't here._

Alice pulled me by the arm away from the door, going to the other side of the bed and kneel beside it, putting it between us and the door.

We're silent for a few moments, listening to what's going on downstairs. I can hear people speaking, but I can't make out the words clearly. I freeze as I hear a voice I know all too well; Alistair. He's clearly giving orders, his voice a little louder and more commanding than the others.

I notice that the cat is just realizing something is going on, uncurling himself and walking toward the edge of the bed. I snatch him up and pull him down with us, having disturbing images of what might happen to him if he's caught in the middle of a fight.

I press my mouth against the comforter on the bed to muffle anything that might accidentally slip out. Thankfully I did, because not a minute later my phone started ringing, making me jump and yelp.

I frantically grab for it on the nightstand, muting the ringer on the second ring. I look at the screen and breathe a sigh of relief when I see _Edward _flashing across it.

I answer it quickly and hold it up to my ear, unable to say a word.

"Bella?" Edward's voice comes through, sounding worried.

"Edward?" I choked out. The dam inside me breaks and I spill everything to him. I tell him that someone broke into the house, that I don't know where anyone besides Rose and Alice are, I don't know what the hell we're going to do.

He manages to calm me down a little, then tells me that he needs to talk to Rose, so I reluctantly pass her the phone.

"It'll be okay." Alice tried to sooth me, but I don't say anything, watching Rose intently.

I hear her make a comment about throwing Cheese at someone and my hackles raise.

"Don't even think about it!" I hissed softly at her, clutching Cheese to me in a furry little ball.

She made a face at me and went back to talking to Edward.

I tried my best to not think about what was probably going to happen. I had to have faith that Edward was going to get here in time.

"Bella." Rose whispered, handing the phone back to me.

"Edward…" I breathed into the phone.

"Bella, angel, I want you to stay on the phone with me, okay? Don't talk, be as quiet as you can, just stay on." He pleaded. He was trying to keep me calm, but I could hear an underlying tone of worry in his voice.

I did as he said, sitting there with the phone against my ear, just listening to him talk to me. Suddenly, I heard another crash from downstairs and we all jumped.

"Bella, what's going on now?" Edward asked softly.

"I don't know… Oh God… Edward I don't know!" I whispered hysterically.

Alice pulled me to her, telling me to stay calm and breathe.

"I uh… I can hear men talking downstairs. They haven't tried to come upstairs yet." I told him as I continued to listen to Alistair yelling.

"Where's Esme?" Carlisle's voice filtered through.

I hesitated, not wanting to tell him I had no idea where she was.

"Downstairs." I admitted. "I'm sorry! She was downstairs with Maggie and Ben, I don't know if they hid somewhere on their own."

Edward told me to calm down and not to worry, that there was a panic room downstairs and more than likely they hid in there. I felt a little better that they were hopefully safe, where Alistair couldn't get to them.

Then I could hear heavy footsteps, sounding like they were coming up the stairs. I saw Rose shift out of the corner of my eye, her eyes trained on the door.

"Someone's coming up the stairs." I whispered to Edward.

"Stay quiet angel. Don't be afraid. If anyone harms a hair on your head I'll kill them." He growled, surprisingly making me feel better.

"Check all the rooms." Alistair's voice ordered. I let out a little whimper at him being so close.

"Can you move to the bathroom without making much noise?" Edward asked hurriedly.

"Yes." I breathed. I motioned to the bathroom to Rose and Alice and they nodded. We moved as quietly as possible to the bathroom, Rose turning the lock into place softly.

"Okay, we're in the bathroom." I let Edward know.

We could hear shuffling outside and the doorknob to the bedroom jiggled. I held my hand over my mouth as the door was kicked in.

"No one's here." A voice said.

"Check the bathroom." Alistair growled.

A few seconds later, someone collided with the door. Rose pulled Alice and I back against the far wall.

They kept trying to bust the door down, and for a moment I thought they weren't going to get in, but I wasn't so lucky.

I screamed as the door was kicked in, giving up the pretense of being silent.

All I could think of was Alistair and what he would do to me. I barely registered that Edward was still on the phone, yelling like crazy, but I couldn't make out his words through the haze of panic in my head.

Rose was up in a flash, charging headfirst into the man standing in the doorway. I heard him grunt as she slammed into him, making him fall back. Rose began swinging at him, punching anywhere she could reach.

_But it wasn't Alistair._

I could see him standing in the doorway to my bedroom, staring at Rose, looking a little stunned by her. I shivered, my eyes were glued to him despite the fear coursing through my body, telling me to run.

There was no where to run.

He essentially had me cornered in the bathroom, unless I could somehow get past him, and even then Alice would be left here.

My attention was drawn away from him when I heard Rose let out a shriek. The man she'd been pummeling had thrown her off of him, where she was now sprawled across my bedroom floor.

"Oh for fuck sake! It's just a couple of little girls!" Alistair growled.

"Fuck you!" Rose yelled.

"Oh! You're a little spit fire! You might be more interesting than little Bella over there." Alistair leered at her.

_No._

Over my dead body would he _ever _hurt Rose like he hurt me.

Suddenly, Alistair didn't look so scary anymore. He was just a man; he could be hurt or killed like any other person.

My eyes narrowed as he laughed Rose struggling with the man. Alice was beside me, going through drawers in the vanity, looking for something that could be used as a weapon. She threw open the bottom drawer and my eye caught sight of a curling iron.

I remembered something that Edward had told me in one of our training sessions last week

_Anything can be used as a weapon, Bella. Being creative with something just might save your life._

"Turn that on." I whispered, nodding toward it.

She glanced at me, then quickly plugged the iron in. Luckily Alice had bought it and she doesn't skimp on beauty products, so it was one of the better irons, fully heating up within fifteen seconds.

"Ah! Fuck! Son of a bitch!" The man Rose was fighting with screamed.

I looked over just in time to see Rose spit something out of her mouth.

"Bitch bit my ear off!" The man continued screaming.

I cringed a little, but didn't have much time to feel disgusted. Alistair was striding toward Rose and the guy she was fighting with, an angry scowl on his face.

"Just punch the bitch in the face!" He growled.

I grabbed the iron from Alice, my fingers tightening around the handle as I stood up, my eyes not leaving Alistair. Just as he was close enough to grab Rose, I decided to make my move. I ran toward him, catching him by surprise. Putting all my weight into it, I collided with his chest, making him fall back onto the floor with a heavy thud. I could tell he was a little stunned, so I took the opportunity.

Without a second thought, I brought the hot curling iron down on his face, watching as the flesh sizzled and smoked grotesquely.

Alistair screamed and tried to throw me off him, but I was holding onto his shirt with my free hand, nearly ripping it apart. He tried another approach and backhanded be so hard that I tumbled off him, rolling a little across the hard floor. The curling iron was thrown to the side as he sat up, still howling in pain.

"You little bitch! You're gonna get it now!" He yelled and began to crawl toward me.

I let out a frightened gasp and scrambled away, trying to reach the door, but his hand wrapped around my ankle and yanked me back. I swung blindly at him, trying to hit any part of him I could. My nails raked across the burned part of his face, feeling his skin peel off disgustingly under my fingernails.

Even through the pain, he managed to pin me down, sitting on my legs and wrestling with my swinging arms.

I looked around me for anything that could help, and could see Rose still rolling around with the same man, though he looked far worse than she did. I heard Alice screaming, but I couldn't see her.

"You think you're so fucking special, don't you?" Alistair yelled at me. "All your little friends coming to rescue you from me. Now who's going to help you? Pretty boy's not around, I made sure of that. And by the time I'm finished with you this time, no one is going to want you." He sneered down at me, knowing just how to twist the proverbial knife in my heart.

_No one is going to want you._

Unbidden images of Edward looking down at me with disgust, saying that he'd never love me now, that he'd never want to marry someone so horrible.

_He almost didn't want me before… he was all for putting me on a plane and never seeing me again. What's he going to do this time?_

I let out a sob, pushing against Alistair, but it was no use. Even injured he was twice as strong as me.

"Bella!" Edward's voice cut through the haze I was in. I sucked in a gasp, not sure if I had imagined it or not.

I managed to look to the door in time to see Edward, gun in hand, rush into the room. His face is fierce, anger like I'd never seen before making a mask of his face.

"Get off her!" Edward seethed through gritted teeth.

Either Alistair was stupid, or he didn't care if he lived or died, because he looked up to Edward and laughed, then suddenly my shirt was torn in half, exposing my bare chest. I shrieked and stopped trying to fight with him, instead moving to cover my chest with my arms.

Instantly, Edward shot Alistair in the shoulder, the force of it making him fall on his back and off of me. I whimpered and began crawling backwards, trying to get as far away from him as possible, not stopping until my back hit Edward's legs. He reached down and put his arm around my waist, pulling me to my feet.

"Run." He told me, then swung me behind him into the hallway. I hit the wall, barely throwing my hands out to stop myself from face planting into it.

I was reluctant to leave Rose and Alice there, but I knew Edward wouldn't let them get hurt. With one hand holding my torn shirt together, I barrel down the hall, nearly falling as I run down the stairs.

"Bella!" Jasper called moments before grabbing me by the arms. "Slow down, you're safe."

"Alistair… upstairs with… Edward… Rose and Alice…" I panted out.

"Stay here." He commanded, handing me off to another pair of arms.

"Bella, sweetie, are you hurt?" The frantic voice of Esme cuts through me.

My eyes take her in, seeing she is unharmed.

_They did have time to hide._

Just beyond Esme, I can see Maggie and Ben sitting on the couch, close together and holding each others hands.

"I… I think I'm okay." I stuttered in answer to her question.

"What happened to your shirt? He didn't, did he…?" Esme trailed off, looking at me with those sad mom eyes that Renee never had.

"No." I shook my head vigorously. "He just ripped it open, but Edward shot him."

Esme pulled me into a tight hug, brushing my hair through her fingers soothingly. I cried into her shoulder, I couldn't help it. She was everything I'd ever imagined a mother to be, and all I wanted to do was curl up on her lap like I was a little girl and fall asleep as she told me stories or sang to me.

"Bella, do you have any injuries I need to look at?" Carlisle asked softly, standing just behind Esme.

"No. He didn't do much to hurt me, he just hit me once." I told him. My cheek throbbed then, as if now that I'd remembered it, my brain was processing the pain.

"I'll get you some ice." Carlisle said.

"Don't fuck with me!" I heard Rose screech from upstairs.

I jerked, remembering that they were still up there.

Edward appeared at the top of the stairs, a very ragged and bloody looking Alistair being dragged along behind him. I gasped as Edward suddenly threw Alistair down the steps, watching carelessly as he tumbled down them.

Edward was breathing heavily, his shirt splashed with blood, I could tell his knuckles were busted open and bloody from here. He glared down at Alistair's prone figure at the bottom of the stairs with fury, his small silver gun still held tightly in his hand.

"Bella, let's go into the kitchen." Esme whispered to me, turning me in that direction.

I let her walk me into the kitchen, where Carlisle was putting ice into a small bag for me. He handed it to Esme as I pulled myself up into one of the barstools at the island, careful to still hold my shirt together.

She gently held the icepack to my left cheek, frowning as I winced.

"I'm sorry." She whispered.

"It's okay." I mumbled, looking away.

"Let me kill him! I'll rip his fucking dick off!" Rose screamed. A moment later she was being dragged into the kitchen by Emmett, who was clearly struggling to hold her.

"Dad, can you take a look at her? He got a few hits in." Emmett grunted, trying to set Rose on a stool.

"Bella." Rose froze as she saw me, giving Emmett a break. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Rose. Nothing too bad. I think you're worse off then I am." I told her, taking in her scratched face and tangled hair.

She shrugged, letting Carlisle rub something onto one of the scratches.

"Where's Alice?" I asked. I hadn't been able to keep track of her in all the chaos, I just knew I'd left her in the bathroom.

"She's upstairs with Jasper. She didn't get hurt, but she's still a little shaken up." Rose said.

We lapsed into silence as Carlisle looked over all her injuries, Emmett glancing worriedly between the two of us. I thought it was sweet that even though the love of his life was hurt, he was still concerned about me.

"Bella!" Edward's voice called out, making me turn my head toward it instinctively.

He came rushing into the kitchen, sweat trickling down his face, his eyes darting frantically around the kitchen until they stopped on me.

"Bella…" He breathed out, rushing to my side. Esme moved out of the way for him, letting him hold onto the icepack instead.

I flung my arms around him, overjoyed that I could just touch him. His hands roamed over my face, careful of my cheek, his eyes boring into mine.

"You're okay." It was a sigh of relief, not a question like everyone else was asking. He knew I was alright, he could see it in my eyes, he knew he saved me before anything really bad happened.

"Where is he?" Emmett growled lowly.

"I took him downstairs. Jasper, Ben and Maggie are down there with him." Edward answered without looking away from me.

I shivered a little, knowing they who they were talking about. I was really starting to wonder how often they kept people in the basement.

"Come on, angel." Edward murmured.

He surprised me a little by lifting me up, his arms going behind my back and knees. I didn't protest as he carried me out of the kitchen, down a long hallway to a bedroom I wasn't familiar with, and into a bathroom. He set me down gently on the closed toilet, leaning down to turn on the bath.

In no time at all, the bath was filled, with small amounts of steam rising up over the water.

Edward pulled what was left of my torn shirt off me and it wasn't until he started to pull down my sweatpants that I made any noise.

"Shhh…" He soothed against my temple. "It's okay angel, I just need to get them off so I can put you in the bath."

I hesitated, but let him slide them down my legs. I hadn't been wearing any underwear to bed, so I was now totally naked before him, something I knew should have made me nervous, but I didn't have it in me to care too much right now. I trusted Edward, there was nothing to be upset about. He was just trying to help me.

Edward gently lowered me into the hot water and felt the tense muscles in my legs loosen just a bit. He kneeled beside the tub, his sleeves rolled up to his elbows, and grabbed the loofah on the shower caddy.

"Will you give me your arm, angel?" He asked softly, holding his hand out toward me.

I hadn't realized I'd curled myself into a ball, knees pulled up to my chest with my arms wrapped tightly around them. With a little effort, I unlatched my left arm and rested my hand his.

Edward began to gently wash my arm, wiping away the red streaks. He splashed the water over me, washing away the suds. He moved up to my shoulder, watching my face for any negative reaction. I didn't give any, Edward washing me felt way too good. I was comfortable because there was nothing sexual about it. He wasn't staring at my breasts or trying to kiss me, just occasionally brushing his lips over my temple, which helped to keep me calm.

Eventually, I was relaxed enough that I was resting against the cushioned back of the tub as Edward ran the loofah over my legs.

"Where were you?" I whispered. I couldn't get over the feeling of me waking up in a cold bed, thinking he'd been there the whole time.

Edward's hand paused on my knee and I heard him sigh.

"The information that James gave us… it was supposed to lead us to Alistair. I couldn't wait another day… I was so stupid… I should have realized it might be some kind of trap." Edward pulled his hands out of the water to rub his face. "We got there and Bree was there with a bunch of Alistair's men, but not him. We killed them all… even Bree. By the time we had realized he wasn't there, it was too late, he was probably already here at the house."

"You told me you'd be here." I whimpered. "I was so scared when I realized you weren't here. I didn't know if you'd been hurt, or killed, I didn't know if you were ever coming back."

"I'm sorry angel, I'm so fucking sorry." He leaned into me, putting his head in the space between my shoulder and neck. "I just wanted him gone… I wanted all of this over with. I didn't want him to be able to hurt you ever again. And now look."

I swear he sounded like he was about to cry. I don't think I've ever seen Edward cry…

Slowly, I reached up until my hand was cupping the side of his face. It was an odd angle since his head was twisted sideways into my shoulder.

"Edward, I understand." I sighed. "I felt the same way when he still had you. There was nothing that could stop me from finding you, the only thing in the whole world I wanted was you back, safe, with no one able to hurt you again."

"We're both safe now." I felt him smile a little against my shoulder.

He went back to washing me, just as gently as before, careful of certain areas. He face was dark as he brushed my damp hair behind my ear, getting a better look at my probably swollen and bruised cheek.

"What are you going to do with Alistair?" I wondered.

_I know a few things I'd like to do…_

"I have a few… ideas. None of which you'd probably want to hear about." He dipped the loofah in the water.

"I want to hurt him." I said softly, not looking at Edward anymore.

"Bella…"

"Let me have this, Edward. I need it. I need to hurt him like he hurt me." I pleaded.

I didn't care how sick I sounded right now, I was telling the truth, I did need it.

"Alright then angel, he's yours."

* * *

**Did we have fun in this chapter? See, I told you nothing really bad would happen to Bella, poor girl has suffered more than enough. I'm going to have so much fun writing the next chapter… anyone have any ideas about how to torture Alistair?**

**Links for everything can be found on my profile page. You can find me on Facebook under Malin Halibell, come have fun with me.**

**Maybe if you leave a review, Edward will come by the next time you take a bath… *wink***


	10. Chapter 10

**Hello! This is the chapter where all of you are probably going to think I'm fucking sick, but oh well.**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN Twilight!**

***Warning: This chapter contains the torture of Alistair, some parts will get very, very graphic.**

* * *

**BPOV**

"Jasper and Emmett have him tied up tightly, so he's not going to be able to move." Edward talked to me from the bedroom as I was getting dressed in the large walk-in closet. "And Maggie made the suggestion of putting duct tape over his mouth, so he can't say anything to try to upset you. That would be the first thing he'd try to do."

Truthfully, I was only half listening. I was more focused on what I was going to do. Yeah, it's a little messed up to sit and think about how you're going to torture someone, but I figure I've fucking earned it.

As I slipped my shirt on, my eye caught sight of the dozens of fine, white scars littering my arm. First of all, I was going to get him back for that. I'd become a firm believer in the whole 'eye for an eye' theory.

I could cut his arms a hundred times and make him nearly freeze to death, but I couldn't… rape him.

Could I?

No… that wasn't possible for a man… unless…

I'd have to ask Edward or Jasper.

"Jasper, Emmett and I will be in the room with you." Edward brought me back to what he was saying. "Rose wanted in, but Emmett and Carlisle managed to convinced her to take a break. Though she said she wants a detailed description when you're done with him."

I heard Edward chuckle a little.

I walked out of the closet and made my way over to where he was sitting on the edge of the bed, moving to stand between his spread legs, and took his face in my hands. Touching Edward was as easy as breathing, it was just letting him touch me that was the tricky part.

"Thank you." I said softly, running my fingers through his hair.

He raised his hands, resting them gently on my waist.

"Anything. I'd do anything to help you, to make you feel better." He said, full of emotion.

"Even if it's torturing a man?" I laughed once, nervously.

"He deserves whatever you give him and more. He took you away from me and hurt you in the worst, most vile way a person can. Don't feel guilty or wrong about anything you do to him." Edward told me, his eyes blazing up at me with fury.

I could tell that Edward wanted to kill Alistair just as much as I did. Maybe I should let him have a go.

"What I hate the most is that he took you away from me." I whispered. "In more ways than one…" I trailed off, running my fingers down his cheek with a sigh.

I remember when it was easy for me to relax in Edward's arms, let him touch me, caress me, without any fear or worrying about something he does bringing up a bad memory.

Edward grabbed my hand in one of his and brought it to his mouth, placing a sweet kiss on the palm.

"I'm here. I'll always be here, until you're ready. You know that." He said softly.

"That's the problem. I don't understand! We've had sex before, I shouldn't be nervous. I know you're not going to hurt me." I huffed.

"Consciously, yes, you know I'd never do anything to hurt you. But subconsciously… angel, you were hurt, that's not something you get over in a couple weeks." He said, being annoyingly understanding.

"I want you to be able to touch me. I want you to be able to throw me down on the bed and have your way with me, without me freaking out and sobbing all over you!" I cried out, frustrated.

"Well I like the 'having my way with you' part." Edward raised his eyebrows teasingly, making me smile. "And maybe we can do that… in a couple months… or after we're married."

My breathing stopped as he said the _M _word.

Married.

It brought up images of me in a white dress, walking down an aisle to Edward in a tux… going off to some exotic location that Edward would want to take me to for our honeymoon… coming back home and living a normal, married life like everyone else. Then lastly, the picture of children came into my head. A little girl that I could read fairytales to, teach her how to play the piano or violin, paint with her like Renee used to with me. Alice and Rose would spoil her rotten with clothes, Jasper would teach her how to defend herself, Emmett would teach her to cook, and Edward would be the poster child of an overprotective father.

I was surprised I wanted that. I had always liked other peoples children, I just never gave having my own much thought. I wanted a child, someday.

_You have to be able to have sex to have children, idiot._

"Why do you have to be so good?" I asked, pushing that out of my mind for now.

"What?" Edward frowned up at me.

"Most men would think I was being stupid or that there was something wrong with me." I elaborated.

"Yeah well, most men are inconsiderate idiots. Esme raised me better." He smirked.

"Maybe I should get her some flowers." I teased lightly.

A knock at the door sounded and I jump a little, moving away from Edward.

"What is it?" Edward called out.

"Can we get this show on the road? This asshole is looking a little too cocky downstairs." Maggie's voice asked through the door.

"I think we should let him stew down there for a while, like he did with me." I mumbled.

Memories of how I'd spent days down in that basement, with no one but Bree to bring me food and water, and sit with me and creep me out. That was just as much a part of the torture as him physically hurting me was.

"We can do whatever you want with him." Edward said, brushing my hair back over my shoulder.

"First, I want to get him back for this." I held my arm out to him. He took it carefully, wrapping his long fingers around my wrist, his thumb brushing against the closest one.

"Then we better get started."

Just as Edward had said, Alistair was firmly tied up, but instead of the chair, Jasper and Emmett had made a change of location. He was hanging from a beam on the ceiling by a think length of rope, tied in surprisingly intricate knots around his wrists. His legs were tied together in the say way around his ankles, leaving him hanging helplessly a couple inches off the ground. A piece of silver tape was over his mouth, muffling anything he had to say.

"You think you can work with this, Belly B?" Emmett asked, standing beside me while he admired his work.

I nodded to him, staring at Alistair. He seemed so… so… non-threatening. Even though he was squirming around in his bindings, trying to get loose and shooting death glares at everyone, he suddenly seemed as dangerous to me as Cheese.

I lifted my chin and met his eyes when I saw him staring at me, showing him that I wasn't afraid anymore.

"There are many tools for you to choose from." Jasper led me over to the counter, motioning like he was Vana White to what I could only call torture devices. Everything from simple looking knives to complex metal contraptions were spread across it, making me wonder why Edward and the guys had them in the first place.

I gave Edward a look, but he just shook his head.

"Can I… could I do this alone? Just for a few minutes?" I asked quietly.

All three of them looked surprised, giving each other glances.

"Are you sure that's what you want to do?" Edward asked seriously.

"I'm sure. I'll yell if I need you." I assured him.

Edward gave Alistair a long, steady glare, before nodding slowly to me.

"We'll be right outside the door." He murmured, pressing a kiss to the top of my head.

I watched as all three of them filed out, glancing back between me and Alistair hesitantly. I hated to send them away, but I had to do this part on my own. I didn't think I could say the things I needed to say if Edward, Jasper and Emmett were hovering behind me.

As the door swung shut behind Emmett, I took in a deep breath, steadying myself before I turned toward Alistair.

His eyes were icy daggers as I met them, but I didn't back down.

Instead, I picked up a knife from the table - it looked like an ordinary hunting knife - and walked over until I'm standing inches away from his suspended body.

"Why?" I asked him. I knew he couldn't say anything in return because of the tape, but it was still therapeutic to say it out loud. "Do you not care that you drag innocent people into your sick little games? Are you so fucked up that you really get your rocks off on other peoples pain? And I'm not just talking about me - what about Maggie, Bree, and I'm sure there's been countless others. Well you know what? I'm not going to sit by and take it. Not anymore."

With that, I stretch up until the blade is resting against his exposed inner arm, look him directly in the eyes, and slowly bring the knife down, making sure I cut deep enough that blood flows down his arm.

He lets out a pained grunt against the tape and his face scrunches up, clearly resting the urge to scream.

"I'm going to do that for every cut you did to me… but I'm not going to focus on one area." I told him. To prove my point, I ripped his shirt open with the knife and slid it down his abdomen, making a streak of blood flow down his skin.

"You're going to sit in here and rot, like you made me for weeks!" I cried, cutting another part of his torso. "I'm going to come down here every day and torture you, to make you suffer like you did to me!"

By now, he's yelling and flopping around in the air, but it's not doing him any good.

"You know, I could have taken you cutting me, making me nearly freeze to death, letting Bree make me do drugs, half starving me to death… I wouldn't be as angry as I am now. But you raped me, and you know what that's going to get you?" I hissed, making sure I was standing right beside him, my mouth inches away from his ear. "I am going to make sure that Edward does something very creative, involving this knife and your dick."

Alistair actually whimpers at my last words, shaking his head violently.

I make another satisfying cut along his ribcage before throwing the knife back down on the table and stomping to the door. Opening it, I immediately spot Edward leaning against the opposite wall, watching the door intently.

"Your turn." I said to him, motioning for them to enter.

**EPOV**

"Belly B… you made him cry." Emmett said in awe as we looked at Alistair.

Blood was dripping down his body in a few places where Bella had taken my hunting knife to him, and Emmett was right - tears were obviously running down his face.

I felt a lot of pride in that moment.

_My Bella made that asshole cry._

I couldn't hold back the smile on my face as I looked down at her.

Her cheeks were pink and her eyes were shining, her hands shook as she glared up at him, but I knew it wasn't because she was scared.

She was angry.

I was afraid that her being in here - alone at that - with Alistair would scare her or set her back, but it seemed to be doing the exact opposite. Maybe this really is what she needs.

"Can I have a turn?" Emmett asked her, almost pleading, like Alistair was Bella's new toy.

"Knock yourself out." Bella shrugged.

Emmett's eyes danced with glee as he and Jasper stepped up to the table with all the weapons on it. While Em and Jasper were busy, I took Bella by the arm and pulled her aside.

"Are you okay?" I asked quietly, smoothing her hair down.

"Actually… yes." She sounded a little surprised. "It helps, I don't know why, it just makes me feel better to inflict pain on him. Is that wrong?" She asked softly, looking down at the floor.

"Hey." I hooked my finger under her chin, pulling her face back up. "That's not wrong. I know that a lot of people might say it is, but if it helps, if I makes you feel better and heal, that can't be wrong. Alistair is a bad person; he deserves to be punished. It doesn't matter who does it."

Bella nodded, looking more confident with my words.

"In that case… I want you to do something for me… to him." She said slowly.

"What is it?" I asked, more than willing for suggestions.

She bit her lip, looking hesitant, before standing on her tip-toes and whispering it into my ear. My eyes widened at her suggestion, then I grinned.

We're going to have a lot of fun.

I took my time rolling my sleeves up, not looking at the bloody, limp body hanging from the ceiling.

Emmett and Jasper had their turn, which involved the breaking of all his fingers, adding to the cuts Bella had done, including slicing off various pieces of skin along his arms and chest, leaving patches of bloody, exposed flesh.

It wasn't a pretty sight.

Bella had sat in the corner, watching Em and Jasper do their work, listening to Alistair try to scream past the tape.

Now, it was my turn. I couldn't do everything that I wanted now, since Bella told me she wanted him to sit down here for a few days, making him wait and torturing him like he'd done to her. I was going to have to pace myself.

That was fine; I could save the grand finale for the last day, put right now I needed to get some frustration out.

"Can you give us some privacy, guys?" I asked Emmett and Jasper, wanting this to be just between me, Bella and Alistair.

Emmett looked a little disappointed that he couldn't stick around for the good stuff, but walked out behind Jasper anyway, leaving us alone.

Bella got up from her seat in the corner, coming to stand beside me.

"You're going to keep him alive, right?" She whispered, so Alistair could hear.

"Carlisle can help keep him alive for a little while." I whispered back.

It was true, Carlisle had many things handy in his little bag that could keep Alistair alive and conscious for a few days, no matter what we do to him, short of stabbing him in the heart or chopping off his head.

"This is going to get messy." I warned her.

"I want to see." She said simply, stepping back and letting me do my work.

I'd had Maggie bring me down the iron fireplace poker, which I now picked up from it's resting place against the wall. Down here in the basement, we had one of those old fashioned wood burning oven/fireplace things. Esme had some name for it but I couldn't remember. The point was, it provided me with a nice open flame to heat up the fireplace poker with.

Sticking the poker in a good five inches, I watched patiently as the metal began to heat up, slowly turning a nice orange-red color.

"Now, we don't want you bleeding out and dying before we're finished with you, so I thought it would be helpful if we cauterized those cuts of yours." I said to Alistair sarcastically, twirling the poker around as I walked toward him.

I wasted no time in laying the hot end across the first of many bloody cuts. His skin made a satisfying sizzle and he screamed through the tape, his entire body tensing against the poker.

I saw Bella smile, trying to hide it behind her hand. I pulled the poker away to reveal a line of melted, bubbling flesh, then quickly placed it on a cut on his chest. I repeated the process several times, having to reheat the poker a couple times to get the maximum effect.

By the time I was finished, Alistair was nearly unconscious, just hanging there, whimpering and crying as I laid the poker against his flesh.

"Is there anything else you want to do, angel?" I asked Bella, tossing the poker into the bucket of water I had set to the side.

She gave Alistair a good, long look. "No… we've been down here for like two hours. I think that's enough for tonight. I want to go to bed."

_Your wish, my command._

"Alright, I'll have Carlisle and Emmett come down and take care of him." I said.

Without another glance in Alistair's direction, I took Bella's hand and lead her out the door.

"I can't sleep." Bella's little voice whispered in the darkness.

After we'd finished with Alistair, Bella and I came back upstairs to try to go to sleep, but neither of us were having much success. We had to sleep in the spare room down the hall from ours, since the door was still kicked down and everything was a mess.

Now, we were curled up together in bed, Bella molded to my side with her head resting on my arm.

"What can I do to help?" I asked softly.

"I don't think there is anything you can do." She mumbled.

"Tell me." I prodded her, not caring how silly or weird she thought she'd sound.

"Will you take a bath with me?" She asked quickly.

"But, you just took a bath a few hours ago." I said stupidly.

"Edward… will you take a bath _with me_?" Bella asked again, giving me a meaningful look.

It took about five seconds for me to get what she was trying to say. My mouth formed an 'O' and I wanted to smack myself for being slow. Then a thought occurred to me. Could I control myself? I probably could, but it would be hell to have a wet, naked Bella right in front of me and not touch her like my dick wanted me to. The bath earlier had been easy, because I was more concerned about how she was than anything else, but now when it was just us, without the threat of a psycho, things seemed different.

"I mean, it's okay if you don't want to. I'll just go take one by myself, I just thought it might help you relax, too." Bella was rambling on, clearly taking my silence as rejection.

"Shhh…" I gently placed my finger against her lips, smiling down at her. "Give me a minute to get everything ready."

I got out of bed and went into the bathroom, going through to get the bath started and making sure all the girly supplies Bella liked where handy. I came across the bubbly shit she likes in her baths and added some into the water, watching as the mound of white bubbles grew.

When I went back out to grab Bella, I saw that she was sitting up in bed with Cheese curled up in her arms. After we finished with Alistair, Bella had had a momentary panic attack as she remembered that she'd left Cheese up in the bedroom, with no idea what had happened to him. That was when Alice popped her head in and presented Bella with the little ball of fur. Apparently Cheese was smart after all and had hid in the bathtub, out of the way of all the fighting.

"Come on." I said to her, depositing Cheese on the bed and taking her hand.

I climbed in first, amused by Bella's blush as I took my sweatpants off. Though I did turn away so only my backside was visible. In an attempt to give her some privacy as she got undressed, I closed my eyes and leaned my head back against the tub. Bella let out a half giggle and I opened my eyes to her.

"Edward, you can still look. It's just the touching that I have some problems with…" She trailed off softly.

Still, I looked off to the side as she took off her tank top and sleep shorts, climbing into the soapy water in front of me, settling gingerly against my chest. My sanity was thankful that the bubbles covered her breasts, because I knew I wouldn't have been able to take my eyes off them.

Since she'd just taken a bath, she didn't really need to wash, but she rubbed the bubbles over her arms anyway, humming softly.

"Why couldn't you sleep?" I asked after a couple minutes.

"Why couldn't _you _sleep?" Bella countered, avoiding my question.

"Bella…" I sighed, not willing to get off the subject. I need to know if something has upset her.

"It's freaking weird having Alistair chained up in the basement!" She said loudly, causing me to jerk a little.

I chuckled, but when she turned a little to give me a death glare, I shut up.

"Bella, just don't think about it like that." I tried to tell her.

"Well how am I supposed to think about it?" She asked, playing with the bubbles in front of her.

I exhaled out of my mouth and wrapped my arms around her waist under the water, which she didn't object to, and rested my chin on her shoulder.

"Think of it as… like him being in jail. He's done something wrong, and we're locking him up and punishing him for it in our own special way." I explained the best I could. "And his jail cell happens to be the basement. If you're worried about him getting out - don't be. Even if he wasn't tied up, he'd be too weak to try anything. And then he'd have to get past the basement door, which locks from the outside and only Jasper and I have a key to it."

"That makes me feel a little better." Bella said, turning her face toward mine.

"Just don't think about it." I whispered, placing a soft kiss on her cheek. "It's just you and me."

Bella turned her whole body to the side so she was halfway facing me and looked up at me, her eyes darting from my own eyes to my mouth several times.

"Edward… kiss me?" She asked hesitantly, as if I wouldn't do anything she asked of me.

I delicately held her chin in my fingers, dipping my head down to meet her lips. They were warm and soft, just like they've always been, but lately when I had kissed her, her lips had trembled against mine. I didn't think she had even noticed, but I had. Now they were sure, moving in tandem with mine as I deepened the kiss.

"We should… we should… stop." I mumbled reluctantly between kisses.

"I don't want to." Bella mumbled back, taking my bottom lip between her teeth and nibbling on it.

I about lost my shit.

Don't get me wrong, I totally and completely understand that Bella needs time to heal both physically and mentally, and I more than support her, but I haven't had my dick in anything other than my own hand in months. And now the girl of my dreams is wet, naked, and in a bathtub with me and she's making out with me.

I'm a man, I only have so much self control. If I don't stop now, I'm going to do something that will make me want to cut my dick off so it can stop controlling my thoughts.

"Wait a minute." I gasped, pulling away.

Bella was looking at me questioningly, her face flushed and her lips slightly parted as she let out little pants of air. Not making my hard on go away.

"What is it?" She asked.

"If we don't stop right now, it's not going to turn out well." I explained, clenching my eyes shut.

_Think of things that will turn you off… Grandma Cullen naked… dead kittens… Emmett's skid marked underwear when we were kids… Carlisle and Esme having sex…_

"Edward." Bella said softly, then I felt her little hands cup my face. "Maybe I should explain something to you - I didn't feel weak anymore. Alistair can't hurt me anymore, I know that for sure now. And torturing him is kind of like an odd sort of therapy. I'm not so… scared now. I mean, I know I'm not ready to have full blown sex yet, but… maybe we could try to do some other stuff."

"Are you positive you want to do this?" She had to be one hundred percent fucking sure about this. I had already made a mistake with her once, I didn't want to hurt her again. I don't think either of us could take it. Remembering her curled up in a ball against me, sobbing because I was a jackass and moved too fast was heartbreaking.

I never wanted her to go through that again.

"I want to do this. We need to start working on this, one way or another. We can't spend the rest of our lives not having a sexual relationship just because I'm nervous." She said.

"I have an idea." I said. "You don't have a problem touching me, right? What if you just try to… _re-familiarize _yourself with me? Make yourself comfortable with me again. You can touch me wherever you want, and I won't touch you unless you say it's okay."

"That doesn't sound like a bad idea." Bella admitted.

"Do you want to get out?" I asked, thinking it might be more comfortable in the bed.

"No. Right here is fine, I can't see… _everything_… very well, that helps a little." She blushed.

"Whatever you need, angel." I told her, kissing her lips lightly.

She didn't let me pull back from the kiss, though, reaching up to thread her fingers through my damp hair. We picked up where we left off, and my hands flew to the sides of the tub when she ran her tongue along my bottom lip.

Hesitantly, testing the waters so to speak, I parted my lips and let my tongue slip through, meeting hers. She gasped quietly, but didn't pull back. I was rock hard again and all I could was pray that she wouldn't feel it and make her uncomfortable.

Bella pulled away, gasping for breath after a couple minutes, making me curse that pesky need to breathe. Her hands unlatched themselves from my hair and began to move down my neck, giving me goose bumps as her fingertips brushed the fine little hairs there. Her eyes never left mine as her hands descended down to my shoulders, squeezing them before trailing down to my chest.

It felt so good to have her fingers running over my skin, I couldn't help but tilt my head back, feeling the pads of her fingers brush against my nipples. Her hands went down my abs, circling my bellybutton then retracing their path back up my torso.

"Not so scary, right?" I asked a little breathlessly.

"Not so scary." She agreed, smiling up at me.

"Anything else you'd like to explore?" I asked, lazily waving toward my body.

Bella laughed and I relished the sound, not having heard it much lately.

"Well… it's not the upper half of you that I have a problem with." She said, eyeing the part of me covered by bubbles.

_Please Jesus, give me the strength not to start humping her right now._

"Do whatever you need to." I told her, breathing out heavily.

Bella sat in front of me for a moment, tilting her head side to side as she examined my bubble covered half, like she was trying to find the best way to do it. To me, it didn't matter how she touched me, because no matter what, I was about to explode.

Her hands rested flat on my thighs underneath the water, slowly inching their way up until she was just a couple inches away from me. I felt her right hand leave my leg, hesitating above the water, before dipping it under.

I held in my groan as her fingertips brushed around the head of my dick, gripping the side of the tub with what seemed like superhuman strength in order not to grab a hold of her.

"Not so… scary… right?" I asked through gritted teeth, trying to lighten the situation for her a little.

"The look on your face is kind of scary." She said with a sarcastic undertone. "It looks like you're about to have a seizure or something."

"Well that's what happens when the most beautiful girl in the world touches my dick." I told her, chuckling a little at her sudden sassiness.

She blushed and looked away from my face, but didn't remove her hand, which was now slowly moving down the shaft. I groaned again, tilting my head forward again to look at her.

The water and bubbles came up to her chest, covering most of her breasts. Her face was intently focused on where her hand was, cheeks covered in a light blush and her teeth sunk into her bottom lip. So looked so fucking beautiful.

"Bella…" I panted out, having trouble focusing on something else than her hand wrapping around my dick. "Can I please kiss you?" I begged.

"Yes." She whispered, surprising me by leaning forward and kissing me herself.

It was a heated mess of lips, tongues, and teeth, me groaning into her mouth as her hand continued to work me. I started to thrust my hips, making the water around us slosh around. I could feel the familiar tingling heat building up in the pit of my stomach, and I knew I was about to cum like a sixteen year old boy.

Part of my brain was screaming to let Bella keep going, but the other part was telling me she might not like or be ready for me exploding all over her.

"I'm about… to… fuck… cum…" I moaned against her lips.

Bella didn't stop and for a second I thought she didn't hear me, but then her grip on me tightened and she picked up the pace.

I hadn't thought she'd be ready for this yet, but she didn't seem uncomfortable and I wasn't about to stop her now.

My hands dug into the side of the tub, still not wanting to touch her and risk her getting scared suddenly.

"It's… okay, Edward." She mumbled between kisses.

It was like I had been subconsciously waiting for her to be alright with it, because not five seconds after she spoke, the tight ball in my stomach exploded.

"Fuck!" I yelled out gruffly, feeling my entire body engulfed in heat, tingles zinging through me from head to toe.

I pulled back from Bella, trying to breathe. My hands still firmly in place on the tub, I slowly unclenched them I as came down, taking Bella's hand in my own and making sure I hadn't made a mess all over her.

She was inches away from me, cheeks as red as they could get as she looked at me, but the grin on her face told me she was happy, proud of herself.

"Are you okay, angel?" I asked after my breathing was under control.

"I think I should be asking you that." She snickered.

"Hey, that was the first time in months that I haven't had to use my own hand." I defended myself, but it was the wrong thing to say.

Bella's face fell and she looked away from me.

"I'm sorry." She whispered dejectedly.

"No." I said, making her glance up at me. "That didn't come out right. I don't blame you for not having sex with me, I'm not _that _much of an asshole. I just meant that it felt so fucking amazing and you have no idea how proud I am of you that you could do something like. Hell, even a week ago you wouldn't have been able to do what you just did. You should be happy - you're making progress. It's one step at a time."

Her smile returned and she wrapped her soapy arms around me in a hug.

"Thank you." She whispered, resting her head on my shoulder.

I held her to me for a minute, trying to keep my hands in appropriate places. I didn't think it was the time for me to try anything with her - she'd just now worked up to touching me, I didn't want to set her back any.

"We should get out, the water is starting to get cold." I said.

She let me help her out of the water, wrapping a ridiculously fluffy towel around her. I wrapped one around my waist then bent to pick her up in my arms bridal style, making her let out a little shriek.

On day five of the torture of Alistair, Bella finally decided that it was time to end things.

She had come down every day, repeating the basic torture of slicing him open and burning the wounds closed, but she also threw in extra things. It was something Emmett jokingly referred to as 'spicing things up'.

Even I never knew what she'd come up with, but I was never disappointed. Bella would come up with little ways of torture, things any of us had ever thought of.

Like the other day when Esme was making chili, Bella spotted the spicy jalapeño seasoning Esme was mixing into it. Us Cullen boys liked things spicy. Bella took a package of it down that night to Alistair, then after every cut one of us made in him, she would rub the spicy seasoning into the wound, making it sting like hell.

That was the moment I realized I should never, ever in my life piss off Bella Swan.

Since he was tied up, we couldn't get him into a tub to do to him what he'd done to Bella, but she became creative with it.

Filling up a large bucket of ice cold water, Bella had Emmett put Alistair's feet in it, leaving him there for a good hour. By the time it was finished, he had some serious frostbite on both feet and he was begging for us to kill him.

Yes, I took the duct tape off of his mouth, only when Bella wasn't around. It didn't matter anyway, he didn't bother with snide comments or threats, all he did was beg and cry and scream.

I felt no pity for him. None of us did.

Now though, it was finally time for us to end it. We'd put him through enough already, Bella was starting to feel a little bad for him, but I knew she still wanted to see what we had planned.

Tonight, it was just me and Bella. Emmett and Jasper were upstairs, 'missing the good part' as Emmett put it.

What we had planned for tonight would be fairly quick, but probably the most violent thing we've done to him so far. I was a little about how Bella would handle this, but it had been her idea in the first place, so I had faith.

Currently, I was heating up the fire poker, having something special planned for it tonight other than what we usually used it for.

That bastard raped my Bella… my angel… he made her afraid of everyone, made her cry herself to sleep at night and flinch when people got too close. He made her scared to have someone touch her, to hold her and comfort her.

So you know what I'm gonna do to him?

I'm going to shove this hot fire poker up his ass and see how he likes getting raped.

Bella was sitting at the table, looking down at her arms.

"Sure you want to stay here for this?" I asked one last time.

"Yes, I want to be here. I can listen, but I don't want to look." She said.

I could see her point. In order for me to do this, I'd have to pull down the bastards pants, and I'm positive Bella didn't want to see any of that again. But she could still listen to him scream.

Satisfied that the poker was hot enough, I pulled it out of the fire and took my time walking over to where Alistair was hanging. He was visibly shaking, sweat and blood covering him. All I could think of was Bella in that room, sick, scared and bloody, and any pity I might have had for him was erased instantly.

Coming to stand behind him, I practically ripped his pants down his legs until they were down to his mid-thighs.

"Let's see how you like it." I growled to him, thrusting my arm forward, efficiently burying the scalding hot poker into his ass.

He let out the loudest fucking screech I've ever heard and I saw Bella cringe a little out of the corner of my eye, but she didn't get up to leave.

"Doesn't fucking feel good, does it?" I yelled rhetorically. Repeating thrusting it in and out of his ass.

Alistair is screaming and writhing in his bindings, getting him no where.

"Kill me! Kill me! I'm sorry! Kill me please!" He yelled between screams of agony.

"Not yet." I growled, shoving it in there good and holding it for a good ten seconds.

The torture was short, but effective, lasting no more than a minute or two. I pulled the poker out of his ass and threw it onto the ground behind me, moving around him to grab my next tools. I picked a pair of metal tongs I had brought down earlier, because I sure as hell wasn't about to touch his dick, and a sharp knife.

Bella was still sitting in the corner, her head down. I took relief that she didn't look upset or disgusted, her face was blank from what I could see.

I used the tongs to grab a hold of his limp dick, holding it out so I'd have plenty of room for what I was about to do. Taking the knife to the base, I began a slow sawing motion, blood spurting everywhere. He started screaming again and I was starting to wish I'd kept the damn duct tape on his mouth.

Once I'd cut all the way through his dick, completely detaching it from his body, I flung it into the fire I'd used to heat up the fire poker.

His screams had died off and he hung limply now, his chest not moving.

The bastard had finally died.

Either from the blood loss or his body just finally gave up, I didn't care.

"He's dead." I announced quietly to Bella, throwing my torture tools on the floor.

"Thank you." Was all she said, still not looking up from her hands.

I walked over to the sink and turned on the hot water, washing my hands and arms thoroughly of any blood that had sprayed me. After I was sure I was clean, I walked over to Bella. Her hand stretched out to take mine and she slowly slid out of her seat.

* * *

***peeks out of my hole***

**Too much? Just right? Did he get everything and more than he deserved?**

**This will be the last of the violence, as there is only one more chappie and an epilogue left.**

**You can find me on Facebook under Malin Halibell, friend me if you want, I don't bite. **


	11. Chapter 11

**BPOV**

"Bella, you should eat your eggs before they get cold." Esme chided me.

My mind snapped back into focus, my eyes swinging up to see her standing across the island counter staring at me with some concern.

"Sorry, I was just thinking." I said, picking my fork back up.

Last night, when Edward tortured Alistair to death, I felt only one thing.

_Satisfaction._

Like I had finally gotten my justice for what he did to me and Edward.

Now that it was the next morning, I was feeling a little bit of guilt. A _little_.

It was like this annoying nagging in the back of my head and no matter how much I remembered what Edward told me about it being the right thing, about how I was getting revenge for what he'd done to me, it wouldn't go away.

_Maybe we had gone too far with the torture. I probably shouldn't have enjoyed it as much as I did. Did that make me a bad person, just like Alistair?_

I huffed, stabbing one of the eggs with my fork, making the yellow yolk pour out onto the rest of my plate.

"What's wrong?" Esme asked, coming around to sit on the stool beside me.

"Nothing." I said, unconvincingly even to my ears.

"Don't make me bring Edward down here." She threatened teasingly. I cracked a small smile at that and put down my fork.

"I know that Edward - and all of you - don't blame me for wanting to torture Alistair. Most of you wanted turns with him yourselves." I was surprised when Esme nodded her head. I hadn't thought someone sweet and motherly like her would want to torture a man, but I went on. "When he died last night, I felt relieved, happy, like he got what he deserved and I could go on with my life. But now… I have this little speck of guilt in the back of my head. I helped kill him… doesn't that make me just as bad as he was?"

"No." She said immediately. "That doesn't make you bad for wanting to get back at him. When someone is accused of murder or something of that sort, they go to trial, they go to prison or they get the death penalty. You know why? So that the people who loved the victim of these crimes gets some payback. They get to know that the person who hurt them or the person they loved will get what they deserve. That's all we did with Alistair. Granted, it was a little to the extreme, but it was what he deserved, wasn't it?"

I thought of all those weeks he kept me in that room, I thought of him using me as a threat over Edward, I thought of him raping me and cutting me and doing all those awful things to me.

"You're right Esme, he got everything that deserved." I said to her.

"You have no reason to feel guilty for anything. You had every right to do what you did down there." She reached over to smooth my hair back, reminding me of when Edward did it.

"Now your eggs are cold. Do you want me to make you something else?" She asked, picking up my plate of cold and hard eggs.

"No, you don't have to do that. I'm not really hungry anymore, I ate all the bacon anyway." I said.

"Just like Emmett; goes for the bacon first." She shook her head in mock irritation.

"Hey, the bacon is the best part." Emmett's deep voice whines from behind me. "Hey Belly B, you didn't wait for my waffles?" He asked, putting a hand to his chest like I had truly hurt his feelings.

"I didn't want to wait until noon for breakfast." I teased.

"Don't go blaming her, I offered to make her breakfast." Esme said to him.

"We're going home!" Alice's voice suddenly echoed through the house.

"We're going to Narnia?" Emmett asked sarcastically as Alice came bounding into the kitchen.

She cut her eyes to him but was otherwise unaffected. "No, Carlisle and Edward are having the jet set up so we can take a flight back to Brazil tonight. We can go home back to the island! I need to start packing! Oh! We should go shopping this afternoon and get some clothes, it's not often I get to shop in Greece. Bella, get dressed - we're going out in an hour."

She turned around and hurried back out of the room, leaving the three of us confused.

Well then, I guess I'm going shopping…

"You can tell her _no_." Edward said through the bathroom door.

I was sweeping up my hair into a ponytail, just having gotten dressed in a simple pair of jeans, a blue and white frilly tank top, and a pair of ankle boots with no heel. Alice wanted me to wear something totally different, but Rose took pity on me and pulled her away.

I could tell Edward torn about all of us going.

On one hand, his protective instincts were screaming at him to grab me and lock me in our bedroom with him. On the other hand, he wanted all of us to go out and have fun, even if it was just a day of shopping.

"You know Alice, she'll pull out the puppy eyes and then I'll cave anyway." I said as I opened the bathroom door, finished getting ready.

I really was weak to her begging, I should probably work on that.

Edward grumbled under his breath, but didn't say anything else to try to persuade me to stay.

"You look beautiful, by the way." He said, coming up behind me and wrapping his arms around my waist.

"Thank you." I blushed.

"Here." Edward handed me something that had been in his hand.

A credit card.

Not just any, run of the mill American Express, no. This card was black and shiny, with a weird symbol on the top left corner. _Edward A. Cullen _was written out in silver lettering on the bottom, along with a series of numbers.

"Take that, buy whatever you want." He told me.

"Edward - I can't just take your credit card." I pulled out of his arms and turned to face him.

"Yes you can. I haven't gotten around to getting you your own card, but I did call and have you put on my account, so you shouldn't have any problems with it." Edward said, not seeing the issue.

"No, I mean… Edward…" I stuttered out, trying to explain to him.

"Take it." He insisted, sensing my problem. "I love you, you're practically my fiancé, what's mine is yours, that includes bank accounts."

"I feel weird taking your credit card and going shopping. I feel like I'm your mistress or some house wife that you hand money over to just to shut me up." I explained the best I could.

"That is not what you are." Edward sounded offended. "I want to give that to you to use so you can buy things you need; clothes, shoes, whatever else you want. Alice might go a bit overboard with all of it, but that doesn't mean you have to as well. I want you to be able to get something you want or need."

"You're right, I'm sorry, I guess I'm just being weird." I shrugged, understanding his logic.

"You're not being _weird_. I understand, you've never had anything like this before. But now, you're going to have to get used to it, because I'm going to buy you everything you want and probably spoil you rotten." Edward laughed a little.

"Not too much." I warned. "Maybe just on designated gift-giving holidays."

"Deal. But you do know that you're going to get like five hundred presents on Christmas, right?" He smirked.

I frowned and turned away from him playfully, slipping his card in my purse to appease him.

"Alice and the others are probably downstairs already. I better go." I said, stretching up to kiss him.

"I'll tell her _no _for you." He tried one last time.

"Alice already said she'd call Jasper every hour or so to check in." I reminded him.

"Alright. Go have fun." He said grudgingly, but smiled at me as I walked out of the bedroom.

As I rounded the corner to the stairs, I saw that I was correct. Alice was standing in the middle of the living room, bouncing up and down on her heels. She was wearing a bright red skirt that came down to her knees, a black pleated tank top, and a pair of black peep-toe heels.

It seemed Alice took shopping excursions in other countries very seriously.

"Oh finally!" She breathed out as she saw me coming down the stairs.

"We're not going to be late to go shopping." I said.

"I know, but the sooner we leave the more time we have to shop!" She said, clapping like an excited child.

I giggled at her exuberance, happy that at least Alice wasn't weighed down by the last couple weeks events.

Maggie came down the stairs after a minute. Alice was practically glaring at Maggie and for a moment I wondered why, then my brain registered what she was wearing; a pair of white, torn up skinny jeans, four inch black leather heels, and a loose, faded Batman tank top. I knew we were friends for a reason.

"You look like a hobo." Alice muttered to her.

"This is how I like to dress." Maggie said, like she couldn't see what Alice's problem was.

"I like it." I told her, ignoring Alice's little sigh.

"Whatever, don't accept my fashion advise. Go into public looking like that." Alice shook her head.

Maggie stuck her tongue out and made a face.

"Alright you two, play nice." Rose came between them, looking stunning as usual. Her long, tanned legs were shown off because of the light pink one-shoulder Romper she was wearing and the matching heels only added to the effect.

Due to the fight with Alistair and his henchmen, her face still had some light scratch marks down her cheek and she had the remains of a black eye, but they were faded and mostly covered up by makeup. You couldn't see them if you didn't know they were there.

"Can we go now?" Alice asked impatiently.

The three of us followed Alice into the garage, Emmett had given Rose the keys to his Hummer so the four of us and whatever we'd come back with would fit.

The house was miles away from any major cities, the closest being Athens, so it was a good half hour long drive. We wasted away the time acting as normal girls would; listening and singing along to music, Rose giving out embarrassing facts about her and Emmett's sex life, Alice going on about what she can't wait to buy, Maggie talking about a second date with Ben.

It was perfect. Like nothing with Alistair had never happened. Part of me was thrilled they were over it and moving on to things they should be doing, but the other part of me was wondering how they did it, when it was so hard for me.

Probably because they weren't the ones raped, they didn't torture Alistair and watch as he died. It was simpler for them to move on.

"Bella, has Edward said anything about that little eight letter word?" Alice asked, half turned around in the front passenger seat to look at me.

"What?" I frowned, not knowing what the hell she was talking about.

"You know… _marriage_." She said.

My eyes widened and the door handle was suddenly fascinating.

_Smooth… Black leather… this must be some expensive car…_

"Bella!" All three of the exclaimed at once.

"Fine! Fine! We haven't really talked about it again seriously. Just mentioned it a couple times. He gave me his credit card." I shrugged, thinking that might mean something to them.

"Which credit card?" Rose asked.

"It's black." I said, pulling it out of my purse and holding it up for them to see.

Alice's mouth gaped open and she snatched the card out of my hand for a closer look.

"He gave you his _black _card." She said in awe.

"What's the big deal?" I asked.

"Edward has a lot of credit cards, each one for something different." She began to explain. "He's got one or two for his business, one for each of his three private offshore accounts - god only knows what he uses those for - one for everyday little things, then… there's _this _baby. This is like the holy grail of credit cards."

"Why?" I asked.

"This card gives you access to Edward's main account." When I gave her a blank look, she continued to elaborate. "Bella, in simple terms, this card has probably got a good fifty million dollars on it."

"Oh my fucking God!" I screeched, suddenly wondering what hell Edward was thinking giving me something like that.

"Whoa! We're going car shopping!" Maggie laughed.

"No!" I yelled, grabbing the card out of Alice's hand. "No, I'm not using this card for anything. It's staying in my purse."

"Oh come on, Bella. Edward gave it to you for a reason. It's not like he just reached in his wallet and pulled out a random card." Alice said.

_Maybe that's exactly what he did._

"I don't think Edward meant to hand me a card with access to so much money." I was in a little bit of denial.

"Pssh… He loves you Bella. Edward giving you this card… he might as well give you a diamond ring." Alice giggled.

I gulped but didn't say anything, choosing to sit back and look out the window the rest of the drive.

It turns out that malls in Greece weren't that different from malls in America. Some of them carried different brands and a few times I gave up trying to read the Greek writing on things, but other than that it was fun.

Alice and Rose went wild, trying on everything under the sun, while Maggie and I stayed back, being a bit more selective about what we tried on.

It took me a few minutes, struggling with myself to hand over Edward's credit card to the sales woman, but I relented, knowing Edward would wonder why I hadn't come back with anything.

We went though several stores, everything from simple everyday clothing stores to Zales. Yeah, Rose wanted to make a stop. Maggie nudged me and looked at the sparkly diamond necklaces pointedly, but I shook my head adamantly. I was not going to blow through Edward's credit card on stupid things like glittery, overpriced stones.

I came from the kind of family where every penny counted. I wasn't about to develop an extreme spending habit on Edward's dime.

"Let's get some lunch, I've got to call the boys anyway." Alice suggested after we exited a little boutique.

We drove a little ways to a Greek restaurant that Maggie said was amazing and at Rose's insistence to the poor hostess, we were seated toward the back of the restaurant in a semi-circular booth.

We ordered quickly and all of a sudden it was like I was a little bunny before a pack of wolves.

"So Bella… How is the sexual part of you relationship with Edward going?" Rose asked, bold as ever.

My hand froze in the middle of reaching for my drink and my wide eyes snapped up to hers.

"What?" I asked, not prepared to tell them about Edward and my bathtub escapade.

"You heard me. Any progress?" She asked, smirking playfully.

"There's been a little." I mumbled.

"Well that's good!" Maggie smiled.

"How much progress?" Alice asked.

"I uh… I… you know…" I waved my hand around, unable to say the words '_I gave your brother a hand job in our bathtub_'.

"Oh, I see." Rose nodded seriously. "So, you've been doing everything? Has he even offered to do _stuff_ with you? Or has Edward become that much of a pig?"

"No! It's not like that." I rushed to defend Edward. "We've figured out that it's easy for me to touch and do other things to him… it's just when he tries to _reciprocate _that I have problems. We're taking steps… little steps, but steps all the same. And he's surprisingly patient with me."

"He better be patient, because if he has the fucking nerve to get upset with you - for anything - I'll kick his ass." Rose muttered.

I smiled at Rose's protectiveness.

"I have an idea." Maggie piped up. "Edward wants to marry you and knowing Edward, he'll propose sometime soon - within the next month or so. Why don't you wait until you two get married to have sex?"

I thought about it. Yeah, he might _propose _soon, but that didn't mean we'd get _married _soon. It could be two or three years before we actually get married, and even I wasn't going to withhold from sex for three years. I don't think. I'd been thinking more in the time frame of three _months_…

I said this to all of them and they conceded that I had a point.

"Okay then, what about when he proposes?" Alice asked.

"I don't know." I shrugged, stopping as our waiter came over to set our food down and waiting until he'd walked away before continuing. "Edward will want to surprise me and I don't know if I'll be ready when he does. I'd rather not have it planned, you know? Sure, it sounds romantic to say we'll wait until we're married, or have this magical night when he proposes to me, but I'd rather it just be _us_. No special occasion or pomp and circumstance."

_Awwws _sounded from them and I blushed, pushing my food around on my plate.

"Can we move onto another subject?" I asked.

"Of course, sorry." Alice said, straightening up. She started planning the rest of the day and I tuned her out.

We finished lunch and Alice called Jasper, telling him we were fine and we'd be back in a few hours. I could just imagine Edward impatiently pacing around the house, slamming doors, snapping at everyone and huffing as he tried to pass the time.

I don't think he'd stop being overprotective of me until we got back to the island, which was thankfully very soon.

Alice led us around to four more shops before saying she had one more stop to make.

Of course, it _would _be the bane of my existence - Victoria's Secret.

"Hey, maybe you should get something." Maggie suggested, holding up a black lacy nightgown.

"Oh no, I'm good." I said, shaking my head.

"Bells, I know you won't be using it _now_, but you're going to go back to being on an island. Maybe you should like stock up on some things. You don't want to realize that you're finally ready to do something and have nothing but granny panties." She said.

"I don't have any granny panties." I mumbled, crossing my arms.

"You know what I mean." She nudged me.

Honestly, she had a point. I didn't want to have to make an emergency lingerie run to the mainland.

"I'll get a couple of things. And nothing too risqué!" I warned.

"Whatever, just pick out what you want." She said, walking off toward the PINK section.

I picked out a few cute pairs of matching bra and panty sets, along with a dark blue nightie that surprisingly didn't show an overabundance of skin. It had a ribbon that tied around to make empire waist, letting the dark fabric flow loosely to stop at mid-thigh.

I casually bought all of it without Alice or Rose coming over to inspect what I picked out, which was a miracle all on it's own.

I didn't make in in the door ten steps before I was getting the life squeezed out of me by Edward.

"She's fine, Edward." Rose rolled her eyes as she passed us.

"And she's got a little present for you." Maggie sang, winking at me.

"Present? What kind of present?" Edward asked, looking over the bags I was carrying for a clue. I could see on his face the moment he spotted the bright pink Victoria's Secret bag.

He wore an expression torn between excitement and trepidation.

"For _later_." I clarified, scowling at Maggie.

I was afraid he'd be disappointed, but his smile held as he grabbed the bags out of my hands.

"You need to start packing, we have to leave in an hour and a half." He said, following me up the stairs.

"I can't wait to go back to the island. I miss it so much." I sighed, remembering what it was like to have some privacy with Edward.

"Bella, I was wondering something." Edward asked as he put down all the bags on the bed. "Did you want to go back and see your parents? They've been worried about you and I'm sure you miss them."

"You want me to go back to my parents?" I asked.

"Not permanently! Just for a visit, a few days or a couple weeks, however long you'd want to stay for." He said.

"I… I don't know." I frowned, my fingers absentmindedly playing with the comforter. "I've never been close with my parents - not like you are with Esme and Carlisle. Honestly, I don't miss them that much, at least not right now. All I want to do is go back home, to the island, and have time to truly relax, just the two of us."

Edward smiled and I knew he was secretly pleased that I wanted to go straight to the island with him.

"If that's what you want, that's what you'll get." He said, cupping my face in his hands and leaning down to give me a kiss.

"Stop distracting me, I've got to pack." I said, pushing him away playfully.

Being on a plane with Emmett was… interesting.

After we'd taken off and been given the all clear that we could move around, Emmett was up immediately. It seemed that he sneaked a little water gun past Carlisle and was now using it to squirt everyone who got the answer to the ridiculous questions he was asking wrong.

All I could say was thank God it was a private jet and it was just the eight of us. Maggie and Ben had come along with us, Maggie deciding to rent an apartment in Brazil until her next school semester started, and Ben was to be her new roommate.

Rose, Alice and I raised our eyebrows at that one.

"Emmett, I swear to whatever fucking God you believe in, if you squirt me with that one more time, it's going up your ass." Edward growled, wiping water off his cheek.

Emmett looked defiantly at Edward, locking the two of them in a staring contest for a few moments, before Emmett deliberately turned the water gun toward me and squirted me right on my chest.

"That's it!" Edward yelled, jumping out of his seat and tackling Emmett.

"Stop before you make the plane crash!" Rose complained, rolling her eyes.

I looked toward Jasper for help, but he was shaking in his seat from laughter as he watched Edward and Em roll around on the floor of the plane.

The only thing I could do was let them work it out themselves, they were just playing anyway. I think…

"Edward, stop or I won't show you what I bought at Victoria's Secret for a month." I said.

Instantly, he was off Emmett and back in his seat next to mine.

Rose, Alice and Maggie snickered, making Edward turn around to glare at them. I reached up, cupping his chin and rotated his head forward.

"Play nice." I said softly.

"I'm sorry angel. It's just that Emmett can be hard to deal with in a confined space." He mumbled, crossing his arms and slumping down in the seat.

"You're so fucking whipped." Emmett chuckled.

"Emmett Cullen, give me that water gun right now." Rose snapped, making him wince. He handed the water gun over to her and continued to sulk for the rest of the flight.

When we landed in a small airport off the coast of Brazil, it was getting dark, so we drove straight to the docks where the Cullen's boat still sat. The guys loaded everything in and we were quickly off.

It seemed so surreal, going back to the island. We'd all been away from it for so long and I'd just gotten used to staying in Greece. Plus everything that's happened… I am supposed to go on with life and forget about everything with Alistair? Besides the obvious, I don't think I could ever forget him dying… Edward killing him and me helping with the process.

You don't brush aside something like that.

Before long, I spotted the island, looking the exact same way it did when we left. It was funny, I considered this place to be more of a home to me than anyplace back in America. When I thought of home, I didn't think of the place I grew up in, or my college dorm room… I thought of sitting in the kitchen watching Emmett flip pancakes. I thought of waking up next to Edward in his ridiculously large bed. I thought of laying on the couch and watching movies with Edward.

This was my home now, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

* * *

**Relax! I know this sounds really final and I said this would be the last chapter, but I'm doing one more chapter, then the epilogue. It doesn't feel right for me to leave it here and then jump to an epilogue.**

**Let me just tell you, something big happens next chapter… *wink wink* You think about what it'll be.**

**Let me know what you think! Maybe Emmett will come over and have a water gun fight with you…**


	12. Chapter 12

**Hello! Long time no, so see, right? Sorry about that. I had a little trouble with this chapter. It's the last official chapter, only having an epilogue or two left. I re-wrote the last half about ten times and I still don't think it turned out the way I wanted, but oh well.**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Twilight.**

* * *

**EPOV**

It's been two weeks since we've been back on the island, and Bella still hasn't showed me what she bought at Victoria's Secret.

Yeah, I feel like a fucking pig for even thinking of it, but I can't help it.

I think it's because I don't know what it is. My brain can't stop thinking about what it could be, then it starts coming up with different things it could be. My mind switched back and forth between everything from a little black thong to a sexy negligee I could unwrap like a Christmas present.

Those thoughts helped me through many cold showers.

Pig. I know.

Other than my near debilitating curiosity, life with Bella here on the island was comfortable. We'd fallen into this relaxing routine over the past couple weeks. There was no pressure on us from any corner, something I wasn't quite used to. I kept having to remind myself that I didn't have to worry about Bella going outside, or Alistair barging into our home to take her away from me again.

Alice, Jasper, and the others kept their distance as well, knowing that Bella and I needed some time that was truly to ourselves.

It was wonderful. It was paradise.

Every morning I got to wake up beside Bella, and every night I got to fall asleep beside her.

She's only had one nightmare since we got here, but after I calmed her down, she told me that it wasn't as bad as the others.

And Bella was getting a lot more… _playful_… in bed.

We still haven't had sex, which I'm completely okay with, but I've gotten many wonderful hand jobs courteous of Bella. Every night, I've made subtle moves to pleasure her, but she turns me down each time. I'm starting to get a bit of a complex.

I know she's afraid that I'll do something that will make her remember, and it hurts to know that she doesn't trust me, that she doesn't want me touching her.

Now, it was early in the morning, we were both in bed and Bella was still asleep. My arm was stretched out so her head was resting on my bicep, I lay on my side facing her, my other arm draped across her waist.

Bella truly was an angel. She looked so peaceful and beautiful sleeping, her hair fanned out around her head on the pillow, her pink lips open just a little as she slowly breathed in and out.

I wanted to reach up and touch her face, but that would probably wake her up and it was still too early.

I tried to go back to sleep considering it was only six o'clock in the morning, but I wasn't successful. By seven, I gave up and tried to maneuver my arm out from under Bella. She stirred a little, but didn't wake up, nestling into the many pillows.

On my way to the bathroom, I passed Cheese, who was curled up in his new favorite spot - the fluffiest fucking cat bed I've ever seen, which was on the floor at the end of the bed. He'd gotten bigger, no more cute wobbling around on stubby legs as he walked, though that didn't stop Bella from carrying him around with her everywhere.

I forgo taking a shower, not wanting to wake Bella up, instead just getting dressed in a t-shirt and comfortable jeans.

Leaving Bella to continue sleeping, I go out to the kitchen to get started on breakfast, because my stomach was making itself known.

During the weeks in Greece, Emmett had been helping me with my cooking. I was getting a little better; I no longer burned everything, and the bacon and eggs Emmett had me make were edible after a few tries.

I decided to keep things simple, nothing too fancy like Emmett did with his omelets and Belgian waffles, pulling the eggs and sausage out of the fridge.

It wasn't long after I had things sizzling on the pan when I felt arms wrap around my middle and lips pressing into the space between my shoulder blades.

"I really hope that's not Emmett." I chuckled, earning a sharp smack to my stomach. I winced, because she just hit my still tender bullet wound injury. I was hoping she wouldn't notice it, but I wasn't so lucky.

"I'm sorry!" Bella gasped, pulling her arms away from me as she backed into the counter. "I'm sorry! I forgot!"

"Bella, it's okay. It didn't hurt a whole lot, it's just a little sore." I tried to assure her, pulling her to me.

"Are you sure? Is it bleeding?" She asked, trying to pull my shirt up to see.

"It's fine." I mumbled, swooping down to kiss her. It was the only method of distraction I had. Thankfully it worked. Bella relaxed in my arms, her lips opening a little when I swept my tongue across them.

I felt her sigh against my mouth and I had to pull away or I was going to maul her on the countertop.

"Edward, I think you burned something." She snickered.

"Damn it!" I hissed, pulling the now burnt sausage off the stove.

Bella was giggling behind me, clearly still amused at my inability to cook.

"You think this is funny?" I asked with a smile.

She nodded her head yes, covering her mouth with her hand as she laughed.

"We should just go over to Em and Rose's." She said.

"No. I _will _cook something, even if it's the last thing I do." I insisted, going to pull out some more sausage. "You just sit down and watch the master work."

Bella rolled her eyes at me, but went to sit down on one of the stools.

I started over, this time diligently watching as everything cooked. By some fucking miracle, the food came out unscathed. I was actually proud of myself, especially when Bella turned to me after taking a bit and said that it was good.

"What do you want to do today?" I asked, rinsing the dishes off.

"Ummm… Rose and Alice want me to come over for some 'girl time' sometime today." She said.

I did feel a little guilty about keeping Bella all to myself the past couple weeks. I said _a little_. I still wanted to keep her in here with me for at least another week.

"Alright, I'll find something to do here, or maybe Em and Jasper want to do something." I told her.

"I could tell Rose and Alice that we're busy, and we can spend all day in bed." Bella said a little suggestively, or maybe that was just me.

Walking over to her, I wrapped my arms around her tiny waist. "No, go have fun with them. I'm being greedy keeping you locked up in here."

"You haven't heard any protests from me." She giggled into my chest.

I kissed her on the temple and watched as she walked off to get dressed.

**BPOV**

I was seriously thinking about calling Rose and telling her I was never coming out. Practically being shut in with Edward for two weeks had really ruined me.

I swear I've gained ten pounds because I've done nothing except lounge around with Edward.

Rose had called me yesterday, demanding that I come out of my cave for some much needed girl time. I relented after she and Alice both begged me, feeling horrible that I hadn't given them the time of day lately.

So now I was stuck going over to Alice's house, probably to be polished and plucked while watching Sex and the City, while Edward did God knows what with Emmett and Jasper.

I was lazy, throwing on a pair of shorts and one of Edward's white button-up shirts, doing this little knot thing with it that Alice had once showed me.

Edward had done a double-take when I came out of the room, clearly _not _upset that I just stole his shirt.

"If you want out, just make a run for it and start screaming, I'll help hold them off." Edward teased as we walked over together.

I smacked his shoulder lightly, still feeling bad for hitting his bullet wound earlier.

"Hopefully they'll only keep me for a few hours. Then we can have all night together." I winked, enjoying the look on his face.

I wasn't blind, I knew Edward was taking way too many cold showers. At first I didn't really mind, but over the past few days, every time we'd get into a really heavy make-out session Edward would eventually pull away, mumbling about going to take a shower.

I never thought I'd be jealous of cold water.

I was surprised when I would pull his hand back after he'd pull it away, worried he'd upset me by touching a certain spot. Or when I would straddle him on the couch and kiss him like it was our last day on Earth.

He'd let me give him many hand jobs, which was due partly because I felt sorry for pretty much banning sex and partly because I actually enjoyed it. I loved giving him all that pleasure, watching his face as he came, the way he moaned my name. Though every time his fingers would brush against the waistband of my pants and he'd look at me questioningly, I shook my head no.

Tonight, that was going to change.

After a very long debate with myself, I decided that I could at least let him try something.

This was why I hadn't put up too much of a fight with Alice and Rose. I needed some time to away from Edward, some time to breathe and think about how all of this is going to happen. Normally, I'd tell Rose and Alice, but I wanted to do this all on my own, needing no encouragement from them.

We reached Alice's house just in time to see her shoving Emmett and Jasper out the door.

"Don't come back until the sun comes down!" She commanded.

"But what about lunch?" Emmett whined.

"You are more than capable of making food, Em." She said, reaching out to grab me by the arm and pull me inside.

"Bye Edward!" I got out before Alice closed the door on all three men.

"She lives!" Rose yelled in a mad scientist voice.

"Oh shut up." I giggled. "I think you'd have noticed if Edward killed me and disposed of my body."

"Not fucking likely." Rose muttered, stuffing her mouth with a handful of Fruit Loops.

"Thanks so much for your concern." I said a little sarcastically.

"Hey, you be nice. We have the power to wax you from head to toe." Rose warned jokingly.

I stuck my tongue out at her like the mature adult I am.

"Just get in here." Alice pulled me along with her into the living room.

It was worse than I feared. Dozens of bottles of nail polish covered the coffee table, lotions and face creams, tweezers and hair accessories, along with a few other things I couldn't name.

"Did Edward poison you with his food?" Rose asked, offering me the box of Fruit Loops.

"No. He actually made something edible the second time around." I defended him.

"Aw! Our little boy is learning how to cook!" Alice laughed.

I couldn't help but giggle a little with her. I had been surprised at Edward's sudden interest in learning how to cook, and when I asked, he went all caveman on me about 'providing for his woman'.

"Now, sit down. We've got to do something about those nails." Alice sat me down on the couch, picking up a nail file.

I wonder if it's too early to go through with Edward's plan.

**EPOV**

"Okay man, once you see it start to bubble in the middle, flip it over." Emmett instructed me.

I did as he said and watched the pancake batter sizzle in the pan, looking for bubbles.

"You better not burn that shit, I'm hungry." Jasper warned from his seat at the island.

"Shut up." I muttered under my breath.

Cooking was not going so well. Emmett said he wanted to keep me on breakfast foods, because they were the easiest. If _this _was the easy stuff, I dreaded trying to cook dinner food.

I saw the batter bubbling up in the middle and immediately slid the spatula under it, flipping the pancake. It didn't go so well. Batter splattered all over the side of the pan and stovetop, making me curse and throw the spatula on the counter.

"This is fucking useless! Bella is just going to have to be the cook in our relationship! She'll understand!" I yelled out in frustration.

"Calm down! This is why we're practicing. Trial and error, dude." He said, taking the pan off the burner. "You were too fast flipping it over. You need to go slow, easy."

I huffed, watching as he poured some more batter on the pan.

"You know, for a guy who's so graceful and shit in everything, you're fucking clumsy in cooking." Jasper noted unhelpfully.

I scowled at him and took the spatula from Emmett.

"Pretend it's Bella." Em said suddenly, making both Jasper and I look at him with confusion.

"Excuse me? You did not just say to pretend this pancake is my girlfriend." I said.

"No man, not like that. With Bella, how do act? You don't just throw her around. Well, don't just throw around the pancake." He explained.

In a roundabout crazy way, it was a good idea.

"Okay…." I trailed off, not really knowing how to respond to that.

When it started to bubble, I slid the spatula under, carefully this time, and gently flipped the pancake over. The other side hit the pan with a satisfying sizzle and I grinned.

"And that concludes today's cooking lesson by Emmett Cullen." Em narrated in a game show voice.

"It's just one pancake." Jasper chuckled.

"Fuck off." I said, not letting anything spoil this small victory.

"Slide if off onto the plate." Em said, holding a black plate out.

"Is that it?" I wondered.

"Yep. Just slap some syrup on it and it's perfect." He said.

"That… wasn't so bad." I admitted.

"See? You just gotta get the hang of it. I practiced my ass off for months before I got as good as I am now. You don't want to know how much food I wasted because I burnt it or put in a wrong ingredient." Emmett said, like he'd committed a grave sin.

"Thanks for helping me man. I have one more favor to ask though… could you help me with something for dinner? I feel bad because it's either been Bella cooking or frozen pizzas. I want to do something nice. Give her a night that she doesn't have to cook or be subjected to horrible food." I mumbled, feeling like the worst boyfriend ever.

"No problem. We've got all day." Emmett chuckled.

Jasper let out a groan and banged his forehead on the countertop.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

When Emmett said he wanted me to grill, I looked at him and laughed.

Me with an open flame was not a good idea.

Although when Emmett told me what he had planned for me to make, it sounded fucking amazing. Steaks, stuffed bell peppers, grilled shrimp, and a salad that Jasper had been entrusted to put together.

Currently, Emmett was standing by my side, instructing me on the proper way to grill. I was glad he didn't just leave me to do everything on my own. I probably would have burned the house down.

"Now you can flip 'em." Em said.

I did as he said, using the tongs to carefully flip the steaks over, then the shrimp.

"This isn't so hard." I commented.

"Yeah, that's because you haven't gotten into the hardcore grilling. Try to grill enough ribs, brisket, and steaks for our entire family and friends, then come talk to me." He snickered.

"One fucking step at a time." I grumbled.

"The girls have agreed to keep Bella distracted for a while longer." Jasper said, walking onto the deck.

I'd told him to go over and tell Alice and Rose what I was planning, hoping they could keep her there for another hour or so.

"Good, we're almost done with this anyway." I said to him.

Emmett and I finished with the food within thirty minutes, giving me plenty of time to get dressed and have everything set up while the food stayed warm in the oven.

I was nervous, worried that something would go wrong. What if Bella didn't like it? Would this be too much for her?

I had to keep telling myself that everything would be fine, that this was no different from any other date night.

The door bell rang and I turned from messing with the food. I'd told Rose to tell Bella that she had to ring the door bell when she came over. Poor Bella, didn't know what the hell was going on and was probably thinking I as insane. I didn't care - I wanted to surprise her, even with a little thing such as dinner.

**BPOV**

I didn't understand why Rose and Alice were making me dress up. They told me they just wanted to play around, but something inside me wasn't buying their story.

They'd shoved me into a loose and flowing pink tank top, black skinny jeans, and a pair of black leather gladiator sandals. Along with some silver bangle bracelets and a pretty necklace.

Then, once they were satisfied, they shoved me out the door to go home and told me I made sure to ring the door bell instead of just going right in.

Now I was pretty sure this was one of Edward's ideas. He has something up his sleeve, I just didn't know what.

So as instructed, I rang the doorbell and waited, wondering what would be on the other side. When Edward answered smiling widely, I relaxed, able to smile back him.

"What's all this secrecy about?" I asked.

"Close your eyes." He insisted.

I humored him, giving him a look before doing as he said. His hands slid onto my shoulders and he proceeded to guide me through the house. I never once bumped into anything, but I wasn't too worried, I knew Edward wouldn't let me run into a table or something.

We came to a stop, his chest brushing against my back and I felt his lips at my ear.

"You can open them now." He said.

I opened my eyes and didn't know what to say as I saw the dinning table decorated with candles, plates of delicious looking food laid out, and the lights dim.

"What is this?" I managed to ask breathlessly.

"This is your night off. I wanted to thank you for everything you've done around here the last couple weeks. You always make dinner, and you put up with me, and you're so fucking perfect." Edward told me.

"Is it safe to eat?" I giggled teasingly.

"Hey! I spent a lot of time on this, you big meanie." He chuckled, trying and failing to act insulted. "Emmett and Jasper helped to make sure I don't accidentally food poison us."

"I'm sure everything will taste wonderful." I said, turning and standing on my tiptoes to kiss him. "Thank you." I whispered against his neck.

"You deserve it, angel. Now come sit down, I'm starving." He laughed, guiding me toward the table.

Edward pulled my chair out for me and I swear I started drooling over all the food. There were so many tasty looking things laid out in front of me.

I loved Edward, but it was clear he hadn't done this by himself, though I wouldn't say anything else about it, because he was obviously excited about making me diner for a change.

It was relaxing as we ate, Edward told me about his grilling adventures with Emmett and I couldn't stop laughing. He was so proud of what he cooked and it was freaking adorable.

"Emmett pulled me back before I could burn my eyebrows, but all Jasper could do was laugh his ass off." He said, stabbing a piece of meat with his fork.

"I'm glad Em saved your eyebrows, I like them too much for them to be burnt away." I said through giggles.

"Is that all you like about me?" Edward asked, a teasing edge to his voice.

"Yep." I quipped.

Edward looked offended. "Here I thought you loved me, but all along it was my eyebrows you cared about."

"I love a lot more than your facial hair." I said, a bit more seriously.

"Oh? Like what?" He asked.

I could feel my face turn pink at all the thoughts that popped into my head.

"Well… I love your smile." I started, trying not to look at my lap. "And your eyes… and your hands, and your arms, how they wrap around me and make me feel safe. I love your voice, how you talk to me and calm me down. I love how you're patient and understanding, and I love how you can make me laugh. I love that you can't cook, because out of every amazing quality you have, that one thing make you perfect in my eyes."

Edward was staring at me the entire time, his mouth open just slightly and his eyes locked on mine.

"I fucking love you." He mumbled.

I grinned, because only Edward could curse and tell me he loves me in the same sentence and still have it make me feel warm inside.

"Are you done with dinner?" He asked.

I nodded to him and in a second he was out of his chair and walking toward me. He lifted me up and I wrapped my legs around his waist, my arms going around neck.

"Couch?" He asked.

"Yeah." I said breathlessly, biting my lip.

Edward quickly made his way to the living room, sitting down on the couch so I was straddling him. He was always careful about letting me be in control when it came to anything about sex, never getting fully on top of me or pinning me down.

His lips pressed into mine, his tongue coming out immediately to trace my bottom lip. I groaned, instantly melting into his chest.

"You're so beautiful." Edward murmured, kissing along my jaw line.

I flushed, tilting my head back so he could have better access to my neck. He trailed kisses across my skin, my breath becoming shallower and shallower with each swipe of his lips.

I expected him to make his way back up to my lips like he usually did, but when I felt him kiss the space between my breasts, I gasped.

"Tell me to stop and I will." He said softly.

I only thought about it for a second before dipping down, kissing him heatedly.

"Don't stop." I mumbled against him.

His hands stayed resting on my waist, but his lips were everywhere, making me pant and whine, my own hands scrambling across his chest and shoulders.

"I love you…" Edward whispered into my neck.

I shivered and whimpered, my insides going all warm and gooey.

"Edward…." I breathed out. "Make love to me?" I asked more than said.

He froze, pulling back so that he could look into my eyes.

"What?" He asked.

"Make love to me." I repeated. "I'm ready. I know I am. You've been beyond perfect these past couple months and I know you'd never hurt me, I don't get tense or worry about panicking anymore. For the first time in months, I'm actually able to relax and not think about… about _him_. I want to at least try."

"Are you sure?" Edward asked steadily.

"Yes." I replied, my voice firm.

He brushed my hair behind my ear, studying my face carefully.

"Do you want to go to the bedroom now or later?" He asked.

"Now." I told him, not wanting to lose my confidence.

Edward once again lifted me effortlessly into his arms and walked to our bedroom. I was a little nervous, but I had a feeling that wouldn't go away until I finally had sex.

"Can I have a moment in the bathroom?" I asked as he set me down by the bed.

"Of course. Take your time, angel." He kissed me on the forehead.

I slipped into the bathroom, checking myself over in the mirror. My hair was a little rumpled, but I didn't look horrible or anything.

As I looked over my clothes, my mind went straight to the Victoria's Secret bag that I was hiding in the back of one of the vanity drawers. It was the drawer I kept all my girl stuff in, the only place Edward would never dare to go.

Should I put it on?

Would Edward care?

I don't think he'd mind either way, but he might like it a bit better that going out in my jeans.

I pulled the bag out of the vanity and took out the dark blue piece of lingerie - something that Rose had called a baby-doll when I showed her. It was cute, not overly sexy like a lot of the others I've seen.

Glancing at myself in the mirror, then back at the baby-doll, I made my choice.

Stripping off my clothes, I put on the silky fabric, adjusting it here and there until it was comfortable. The ribbon tied around my waist, just under my breasts, and the fabric fell loosely down the rest of my body to my mid to upper thigh.

I ran my fingers through my hair and satisfied that this was as good as it'd get, I opened the bathroom door and stepped out.

Edward was sitting on the edge of the bed, studying his hands and looking nearly as nervous I as felt.

When he heard me come out, his head snapped up and I saw his eyes rake over me.

"Wow." He muttered.

"Do you like it? It's something that I bought a couple weeks ago, I figured I better get some use out of it." I shrugged nervously.

"I fucking love it." Edward grinned, breaking the tension.

I giggled, walking over to stand in front of him.

"We don't have to go all the way, you know that, right?" He asked, taking both my hands in his. "We can just do some other stuff."

"I know, but I want to try. I have to get over my nerves somehow." I set my hands on his shoulders, leaning into him.

"You really do look good in this." He smirked, fingering the materiel around my thigh.

"Maggie suggested that I get some things for times like this and I thought it was a good idea." I said.

"Remind me to call and thank her tomorrow." Edward chuckled up at me.

I smiled, one of my hands cupping his cheek. He looked so happy. And it wasn't just tonight, it's been the past week or two. There's always a smile on his face and he's laughing and messing around with Emmett and Jasper. We do simple things like watch movies or just lay in bed and he's always got this look on his face, like he's the happiest person in the world.

Without another word, I slid down until I was sitting on his lap, my legs on either sides of his. Edward's hands didn't move from my waist, looking up at my face carefully.

"Just go normally, I'll be fine." I said quietly, wrapping my arms around his neck.

He nodded in agreement, one of his hands moving to cup my face, his fingers stroking my cheek. I didn't hesitate to lean down and kiss him, my tongue coming out almost immediately to stroke across Edward's, his responding groan vibrating my lips.

Slowly, Edward turned us over, laying me down against the pillows and hovering over me, but still not touching.

"I love you." He whispered, dipping down to place little kisses on my shoulder.

His words relaxed me more, kept me grounded, reminding me that this was Edward.

My hands went to the front of his shirt, undoing the buttons one by one, until I could slide it off his shoulders and down his arms. He helped me, flinging it someone across the room. I didn't really pay attention, because I had Edward's muscled chest right in front of me - a girl tends to get a little distracted.

Edward shirtless was no problem for me, it was Edward pant-less that was going to be the problem. He's had his shirt off plenty of times, either during make-out sessions or while we've been on the beach swimming. And while he's had his pants off a few times in bed, I've always known it wouldn't go any farther than me touching him.

"Bella, are you alright?" Edward's worried voice broke into my thoughts.

"I'm fine." I responded quickly.

"Bella…" He gave me that look, saying he didn't quite believe me.

"Really, I am okay. I'm just a little nervous thinking about… doing stuff we haven't done for a while." I said.

"If you're that nervous, then maybe we shouldn't be doing this." He said, concerned.

"I want to." I said, gripping his arms as he started to pull away. "We need to try sometime, I don't want to live the rest of my life afraid of you, just because I was too nervous to try."

"I don't _ever _want you to be afraid of me." Edward whispered sadly, running his hand through my hair comfortingly.

"I'm not afraid - not anymore - but if we don't take the next step I'll always have that nervousness. And while waiting for a few weeks or months is fine, what about in a year, or ten? I know neither of us can live in a sexless relationship." I told him, trying and failing to imagine Edward going without sex for the rest of his life. It just wasn't possible.

"I don't want to make you upset again." He said sadly.

I sighed, knowing that he was remembering the first time we tried and I broke down crying for hours.

"Don't think about that, I'm past all of that now. We've done plenty of things since then and I've been perfectly fine." I said brightly.

"You still haven't let me _touch _you." He nearly mumbled.

I bit my lip, not knowing what to say to that. I'd been nervous about having him touch me anywhere below my waist, whether it be that I was subconsciously afraid, or that I was just nervous about what his reaction would be, or even what mine would be.

"Touch me now." I told him, running my fingers down his arm in what I hoped was somewhat seductively.

I reached his hand, pushing it slowly down until it rested on my thigh.

Edward stared into my eyes, watching my every expression carefully as he slid his fingers oh so slowly up my leg, dipping under the hemline of the silky fabric.

"Just hit me or something when I do something you don't like." He smiled against my cheek.

I giggled, the mood lightening instantly.

"I don't think I'll have to, but I'll file that in my head for future reference." I laughed lightly.

"You're so beautiful…" He mumbled, suddenly turning serious.

I blushed, looking up at him through my lowered eyelashes. His fingers continued their journey, coming to my lacy underwear.

"Can I take these off?" He asked gently.

"Go ahead." I whispered.

Edward's fingers worked their way under the sides, slowly bringing them down my legs, inch by inch. I wiggled around, making it easier for him and settle back down into the bed as he tossed them onto the floor.

He gave me a look, silently asking if I was still alright, and I responded by gripping him by the shoulders and bringing him back down on top of me. He brushed my hair back and brought his mouth down on my forehead, kissing there, then trailing down to the tip of my nose, until he reached my own lips, plying them open gently.

I melted into him as his tongue brushed mine, my arms wrapping around his back, needing to feel him against every part of me.

My skin felt hot, almost feverish and I needed him to do something else other than kiss me.

"Touch me. please." I breathed out against his lips.

Edward pulled away just enough to look at me, his breaths coming out in little pants against my jaw line. I expected him to go straight for my thighs, but instead his hand moved across my ribcage just under my breasts, his thumb reaching up to brush my nipple through the thin cloth.

It hardened underneath his warm finger and I shuddered, pushing my chest into his hand. Edward rubbed his thumb against me a couple more times, before pushing the strap of my dress down far enough that it exposed my breast to him.

He glanced up at my face for a second before diving down, his mouth instantly wrapping around my nipple. I gasped, biting my lip and squeezing my eyes closed at the feeling his warm, wet lips created.

I wasn't scared a bit, if fact, I wanted more.

Edward began sucking, his tongue flicking over it rhythmically, driving me half insane.

"Edward!" I gasped, arching my back.

"Does it feel good?" He asked, smirking a little.

_He knows exactly what it feels like._

"Yes, yes." I said urgently, not wanting him to stop for a second longer.

I got my wish, his head dipping back down to my breast, kissing every bit of my flesh before taking me back in his mouth. I felt his fingers move to my left shoulder, sliding down the strap on that side like he'd don to the other. Now the negligee was bunched up around my waist, Edward's hands exploring the skin available to him with care.

I tilted my head to the side, whimpering in pleasure under him, my hands threading through his copper hair and tugging occasionally. He released my nipple with a soft popping noise, looking up at me with dark eyes as he moved to the other one, giving it the same treatment.

By the time he was finished, I was a panting mess against the pillows, my skin on fire and my legs rubbing together as if they had a mind of their own.

Edward kissed my lips, murmuring sweet words against them. "I love you so much, my angel. I'll never, ever hurt you. I'll love you for the rest of my life and protect you against anyone who ever dares to lay a finger on you. You're perfect, inside and out."

I believed him, I finally believed him down to the very core of my soul. There was no hesitation anywhere in my body or mind, it was just Edward.

I couldn't find the words to respond with, so instead I kissed him heatedly, trying to pour all of my feelings into it and hoping he could feel what I was trying to convey to him.

"I love y-you, too." I whispered as I pulled back, my voice catching.

He smiled, kissing me once again quickly, then that little spot under my ear and down my neck.

"Make love to me now." I said softly, hitching one of my legs up around his hip.

"Not quite yet, angel - I'm still not finished." Edward said, pushing off me and positioned himself so he was kneeling between my legs.

"Do you feel uncomfortable?" He asked, gliding his hands up my calves.

"No." I answered.

"Do you trust me?" He asked, reaching my knees.

"Always." I murmured, not taking my eyes off his.

He spread my legs wider and he laid down on his stomach between them. I held my breath, knowing what he was about to do. I was a little nervous, but like I'd told him, I trusted him.

Pushing the bottom of the negligee up all the way, I was now completely exposed and open to him. My face was pink and I resisted the urge to snap my legs closed, but I that was nothing new. I'd always been shy, even after Edward and I had had sex several times before. It was just part of my personality.

I felt him touch that place where my leg meets my hip and I tensed up, unable to help it.

"Shhhh…" He soothed against the inside of my leg.

I relaxed, making a contented noise in the back of my throat and he continued. His fingers ran over my folds gently, making me shudder. His fingertip brushed my clit and I jumped feeling the jolt of pleasure course through me.

"Oh!" I gasped, his fingers rubbing that spot over and over.

"That's it, angel. Just relax and feel." Edward hummed into my feverish skin.

He removed his fingers, only to replace them with his tongue, licking my clit slowly.

"Edward!" I gasped sharply, reaching down to grip his hair tightly.

"Do you want me to stop?" He asked.

"Oh god no, don't stop." I almost moaned.

He smiled, going back to his task. His tongue took over the motion his fingers had taken, making wet, hot little circles around my clit.

One of his hands reached up to find my own, intertwining his fingers with mine and squeezing gently, almost reassuringly. I smiled, squeezing back to silently tell him I was alright.

Hell, I was _way _better than alright. The things he was doing with his tongue… I had to ask myself why I'd waited so long.

"Edward…" I panted. "Edward… oh… yes."

He hummed against my flesh and I practically shrieked at the pleasure it shot through my body. He made a few more strokes, then much to my frustration, crawled back up my body until we were face to face.

"Why'd you stop?" I whined.

"It'll be easier for you this way, trust me." He said, kissing up my shoulder as he gently wrapped his hand around one of my legs and hitched it around his hip.

"Are you sure you want to do this and you're ready?" Edward asked once again, looking into my eyes.

"Yes, I want to do this. I want to get over all of this and be close to you again." I answered in a near whisper.

He nodded, brushing my hair back then worked his pants off, throwing them to the side. He looked up at me steadily, judging, before slipping off his underwear as well.

Silently, he settled back on top of me, resting his elbows on either side of my head. You'd think I would feel trapped, but as I looked up at him, I felt the complete opposite. I felt comfortable, safe, protected. Like with Edward's arms around me, nothing could hurt me.

"Is this okay?" He whispered.

"It's perfect." I smiled up at him.

"Just keep looking at me, angel." He murmured.

Edward positioned himself carefully and I could feel the tip of him brush against me. I bit my lip, trying to keep myself from squirming under him. Edward held still for a minute, letting me get used to the feel of him.

When he began to slowly push into me, I tensed up, snapping my eyes shut and breathing in and out deeply, trying not to remember _him_.

"It's okay, angel. Relax. It's me, it's Edward, I won't hurt you." I heard Edward's voice in my ear. He grounded me, reminded me that I was here, not in that basement.

I wrapped my arms around his neck, needing to feel his smooth muscled skin under my fingertips.

"Keep going." I mumbled.

He kissed my lips, then started pushing into me again. My fingers dug into his shoulder blades and tried to focus on how the pressure and fullness inside of me felt amazing. Inch by inch he moved into me slowly until he was completely buried inside me.

"Are you alright?" Edward asked urgently, his voice deep and heated.

I laid there, trying to assess how I felt. I know that even a week or two ago, I'd never have gotten half this far.

Edward was actually inside of me, for the first time in months. It felt… strange. Not awkward or uncomfortable strange, more of a foreign feeling. Like getting back on a bike after not having been on one for a few years. I knew what to do, I just had to get used to it again.

"I… I'm not afraid." Was all I could tell him. I had a feeling that was his main concern anyway.

Edward placed little kisses all over my face, relaxing me even more and giving me time to get used to him inside me. I took deep, even breaths, always keeping in my mind that this was Edward.

"I think you can move now." I whispered.

He looked a little strained and I knew he was trying to not let his instinct take over and start thrusting into me. I knew this was hard on him too, the poor guy hadn't had anything but his hand and mine for months.

"It's okay, Edward." I said when he hadn't moved.

Ever so slowly he pulled back, watching me carefully, but his worry wasn't needed. I wanted _more _of him. I whimpered as he pushed back in just as slowly as he'd pulled out, the feeling of friction making me tingle.

Edward kept his pace slow, unhurried, like he was just enjoying the feeling of being in me. He thrust gently into me, keeping his lips somewhere on my skin at all times.

"You feel… so good, angel. I love you." He murmured, wrapping his arms around my back, bringing me closer to his chest.

"Edward… oh… love you…" I gasped and moaned, surprised I could even get those words out at this point.

The build up inside of me was slow, but intense. I'd almost forgotten what this feeling was.

"Oh… I… I think… Edward…" I groaned into his chest.

"Come on, angel. Feel me… relax… just let it all go." Edward muttered against my skin.

He hit a special spot inside me and that little ball of tension in my lower stomach and thighs tighten even more.

"Ah…" My voice caught in my throat.

Edward dipped his head down further, licking around my nipple before taking it into him mouth. He kept thrusting against that one spot, making me go crazy, arching my back against him and throwing my head side to side, moaning and clawing at his back.

It took only two more thrusts of his hips before the friction and tension in my stomach exploded. I cried out into his neck, gripping him tightly with my arms and legs as what felt like fissures of electricity ran through me from head to toe.

I collapsed back onto the soft bed just as Edward moaned my name, feeling him tense above me.

Edward rolled away, bringing me with him so I rested against his chest. We were both breathing heavily, sticky with sweat and blissfully unaware of the rest of the world.

"Are you alright?" Edward asked once he'd regained his breath.

"I'm perfect." I smiled, nuzzling his chest.

"You didn't get scared?" He pressed.

"I was nervous, but no, never scared." I assured him.

He pulled me tighter against him, kissing the top of my head and brushing my hair behind my ear soothingly.

"Do you need anything?" He asked, ever so attentive.

"I just need you. Hold me, that's all I want." I told him sleepily.

"Anything for you, angel. I'd give you the world if you asked me for it." He whispered.

"I have a feeling you seriously mean that, so it's good that the only things I want are here on this island." I smiled up at him.

He grinned back, not denying my theory.

"Go to sleep, my Bella. I'll be here when you wake up."

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**~*~*~*~*~*~SOR~*~*~*~*~**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

I felt something tickling my face and I scrunched my nose up and shifted away. When it started again, I became coherent enough to actually wonder what it was.

Opening my eyes, I saw Edward leaning over me, a smile on his face. I realized that it was him tickling me and playfully swatted his arm.

"What are you doing?" I mumbled.

He didn't answer, instead continuing to run his finger down my neck and shoulder, making me giggle. He traveled down my arm, coming to a stop at my fingers.

"Edward?" I tried asking again.

I felt his lips brush against my ear, making me smile as I turned my head toward him.

"Isabella Swan, will you marry me?" Edward asked.

_I'm awake now._

My eyes snapped down to where he was still playing with my fingers. Correction - one finger. My ring finger. And I now could see that it wasn't his fingers that he was running over me, but a very big and sparkly diamond ring.

I gasped, my hand clamping over my mouth.

"I love you more than my own life." Edward said softly. "You are beautiful, and strong, and good, and everything I'll ever want. I'll love you every single day of the rest of our lives, and you would make me the happiest man in the universe if you would become Mrs. Edward Cullen."

I don't think I can breathe. Not in the bad way, just in the _oh my god I can't believe this is happening and I'm so happy_ way.

"Bella?" Edward asked hesitantly.

I realized I hadn't said anything yet, making him worry.

"Yes!" I blurted out. "I want to marry you, yes!"

His worried look vanished, a large grin replacing it as he carefully placed the ring on my finger. I took a closer look at it, seeing how it sparkled in the sunlight. The band was white gold, the diamond looked huge, at least five or six carats.

"It's… wow. I… it's too much, Edward." I said.

"No it's not, trust me, there were bigger diamonds in the store that I wanted to get, but Rose talked me out of it." He laughed. "Do you like it? That's all that matters, not how much it cost or if you think I went overboard."

"I love it." I said, unable to take my eyes off the sparkling gem. Edward kissed me on the forehead, taking my hand in his.

"I can't wait until I can call you Mrs. Cullen." He looked like a giddy little boy on Christmas morning.

"One step at a time." I laughed. "We need to tell everyone, then we need to set a date and plan everything, oh God this is going to be one big mess. Maybe I can get Alice and Rose to hel-"

Edward kissed me soundly, shutting up my rambling.

"We can just elope." He said, pulling away. "Go to Vegas and skip all the fuss. There wouldn't be so much pressure that way."

"No… I've always wanted a wedding with my family and friends, even if it is just something small." I told him.

"Then that is what you will have, future Mrs. Cullen." Kissing me between grins.

I laughed against his lips, positive that he'd be calling me that a lot until we got married.

I didn't mind one damn bit.

* * *

**So...? You like it? Was the lemon believable? I wanted it to be more focused on the emotional parts than the actual sex. You know? And Edward finally proposed! **

**Next up is the epilogue AKA the wedding and honeymoon. That's going to be a fun chapter, no real seriousness in it at all.**

**Thank you for reading! **


	13. Epilogue: Part 1

**This epilogue is taking longer to write than I thought it would. So I decided to split it up into two parts - this is the first epilogue, which will include a lot of fun stuff like the bachelor and bachelorette parties, and overall fun times with the gang. The next epilogue will include the wedding and honeymoon - AKA: Sexy times.**

* * *

_**Six months later**_

"What do _you _want?" Edward questioned softly, twisting one of my brown curls around his finger.

We laid in bed, snuggled together as we talked. Two days from now, we were going to get married. Both Edward and I couldn't wait, but there was something in the back of my mind that was bugging me.

After Edward had proposed, we'd told everyone the next day. Alice, Rose, and Esme were ecstatic, practically ripping my hand off to get to the ring. Immediately, they buried themselves in wedding plans, asking me about flowers and food and music and dresses. I'd given them free reign of things, asking only for veto power and of course picking out my wedding dress.

I hadn't wanted to deal with all of the stress wedding planning seemed to bring and I knew they'd enjoy it more than I ever would.

The first few months had been great and easy, Alice was having me pick between two or three things like different kinds of flowers, or colors for odd little things after she narrowed it down for the final choice.

But now that it was closing in on the big day, it was suddenly starting to feel less and less like my wedding.

I hadn't said anything, not wanting to hurt Alice's feelings or having months of planning ruined, but considering the question Edward had just asked me, it was clear he knew exactly how I felt.

"About what?" I asked, trying to side-step the subject.

"Bella, I know you better than I know myself - I can tell you're not very excited about our wedding. And I don't know if I should be offended or not." He tried to smile, but I could tell he was worried.

"It doesn't feel right." I finally admitted.

"What doesn't feel right?" Edward asked, panic in his voice.

"This is probably going to sound so stupid and girly," I started hesitantly, "but… I've been thinking and all of the things that Alice and Rose are planning… it doesn't feel like _my _wedding anymore. At first I was glad that they'd taken over the planning, but now I'm wondering about how much of this is really you and me."

"Oh angel." Edward murmured, pulling me tighter into his bare chest. "Why didn't you just say something before? We can tell Alice and Rose and work something out."

"No we can't." I said, sitting up. "Edward, there are two days before we get married. If we tell them now, months of work and planning will be ruined and we'll have to start all over again. We don't have time for that."

"We can push the wedding back a month or two." He tried to assure me.

"No." I groaned. He wasn't getting it at all. "I've already waited months to marry you, I don't want to wait anymore."

"Let's elope." Edward said, sitting up to face me.

"What?" I was surprised.

"Let's go to Vegas or wherever you want and just elope. We can go directly to our honeymoon afterwards, and avoid all of the stress and pomp that I'm sure Alice has in mind."

"Edward, we've talked about this - though it is looking a bit more appealing. I want our family to be with us when we get married." I said, leaning over so my forehead was on his shoulder.

"What if we could have both? Would you like that?" Edward asked slyly.

"How can we have both? The whole point of eloping is the two of us going off together and getting married in secret." I said.

"Well… you don't feel like this is your wedding anymore and you don't want it, correct?" He asked and I nodded. "What if everyone came with us to elope? All of us get on a plane somewhere and we get married how we want - family included. What would you think of that?"

"I think they'd all have heart failure." I snorted.

"Who cares what they think." Edward said. "This is about us, not Alice or Rose or the planning and this huge affair that honestly, neither of us want or need."

It would be the best of two worlds.

Our family would be there, but we could skip over the unnecessary wedding. I didn't need a huge, fairytale wedding, I just wanted to marry Edward and have the people we love with us.

"Yes." I told him simply, a smile breaking out across my face.

"Yeah?" Edward asked, sounding surprised that I'd agreed.

"Let's go to Vegas. We can stay in a hotel for a couple days with everyone until we decide when to have the ceremony. I'm sure Emmett and Jasper will love being able to gamble. Everyone can have a sort of mini party vacation." I said, the idea sounding better and better by the second.

"When do you want to go? Now? In the morning?" Edward asked excitedly.

"We seem to have a history of leaving the island in the middle of the night." I giggled. "I think we should wait until at least the morning. I want to get a couple good nights sleep before my wedding."

"Oh! Of course, I'm so stupid." Edward muttered to himself.

"No, you're not stupid." I laughed lightly, running my hands over his warm, bare shoulders. "You're just excited, so am I. I can't wait until tomorrow and we're finally_ Mr. and Mrs. Cullen_."

"God, that's sounds so fucking amazing." Edward groaned, cupping my cheek and kissing me soundly.

I laid back in the pillows, Edward following me down and not breaking apart our lips. I moaned as his tongue slipped out to meet my own, sending delicious sensations throughout my entire body.

The past few months had been spent working on our sex life, much to our mutual enjoyment. I was no longer scared or nervous of anything Edward and I did, half the time me being the one that initiated things. We'd had sex in pretty much every location in the house, even being as daring as having sex on the beach in the middle of the afternoon. The fact that someone could have come out and walked only a few yards toward the house and be able to see us served to excite us both even more.

Emmett had walked in on us once. We'd been having what Edward liked to call a little 'morning delight' in the kitchen, I'd been bent over the island, thoroughly enjoying the way Edward was pumping into me from behind and whispering dirty things in my ear. Unfortunately, from the direction Emmett had come in from, he was able to get a nice side view of _everything_.

I'd been just about to cum when I'd heard a shriek and something break, looking up just in time to see Emmett's huge form running toward the door.

I had been so fucking embarrassed I hadn't even been able to orgasm.

When I had finally worked up enough courage to go over and see if he was alright, Rose was cackling so hard she couldn't get up off the couch, only able to point me in the direction of the kitchen where I could hear Emmett rummaging around.

"I need brain bleach!" He was screaming, throwing around cleaning products.

I'd managed to pull him away from the bleach before he could seriously harm himself and apologize for the scarring eyeful we'd given him. Still, for a few days afterwards he had trouble looking at me or Edward without shuddering and making a gagging sound.

Eventually we'd both gotten over it, laughing about it now and poking fun at each other. Edward had said that now Emmett would know better than to just walk in without knocking.

Edward's lips were traveling down my neck, bringing my mind back to him.

"Edward… you know we can't." I moaned just as his lips enclosed my left nipple in his warm mouth.

Now, I'm not much of a girly-girl about wedding traditions and stuff, but I had wanted to do _one _thing right.

I'd always dreamed of having this spectacular and romantic wedding night and I'd realized that it might not be so spectacular if it was just like any other night of us having sex. I clearly wasn't a virgin anymore, so I had thought of another way to make it special.

Rose had told me about how some women abstained from sex for a certain amount of time before their wedding so when the honeymoon came, it would be a lot more than just every other regular night.

I'd told this to Edward and I swear all the color drained from his face. I could understand his panic, seeing as when I brought it up, it was still four months away from our wedding. I quickly clarified that I didn't want to stop having sex until a couple weeks before we got married.

Now, it's been almost three weeks since the last time we had sex.

With Edward being Edward, he didn't complain, telling me he understood and he wanted to make the honeymoon into everything I wanted, but I could tell it was getting harder and harder for him by the day.

Like right now.

His hands didn't go any lower than my waist, but his mouth on my breasts was driving me mad.

"Edward!" I moaned as he sucked sharply on my nipple.

"Come on Bella… I haven't made you cum in three weeks. You know what I can do without actually having sex." He grinned up at me playfully. "Just call it a preview to the honeymoon."

"That's not a preview, it's called cheating." I smirked.

"Well a man's gotta try." He winked up at me, still smiling.

"Away from the boobs." I snickered, pulling him up by the shoulders.

"But they're so fun!" Edward groaned.

"This time in two nights you can have as much fun with them as you want." I laughed.

Edward chuckled with me, kissing my lips languidly for a few moments before finally settling back in the pillows with me, pulling me so I was curled into his side.

"Go to sleep, angel. Tomorrow we'll have to deal with the wrath that is Alice."

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**SOR**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

"You want to get married _where_?" Alice screeched, making me cringe away slightly.

We were sitting in her living room, surrounded by various beauty products that she'd been using on me. This had been a voluntary process on my half, believing that if I told her what Edward and I wanted to do while she was doing something she enjoyed, it would lessen the blow.

Apparently, I was wrong.

In fact, now that I caught sight on the little pot of hot hair wax on the table, I was suddenly worried it could be turned into a weapon if she really wanted.

"We want to get married in Vegas." I repeated hesitantly.

"Why?" She cried, now looking more heartbroken than angry.

"Alice, I appreciate everything you've done to help with the wedding," I took one of her hands in mine, "but… now that I'm really looking over everything you've planned and set up, it's just too much! It's not what Edward and I want. And I don't want to push back the wedding even further and put more work on you, that would be even more unfair than it already is. So we decided to have everyone come with us to Vegas so we can get married there. If you want to go, of course."

She leaned back, sighing and seemed to be thinking for a couple moments.

"I'm sorry that things got out of control." Alice apologized. "We were all just so excited and I thought that you'd want something nice and I guess I lost track of things."

"I'm sorry, too. I know I should have told you about this weeks ago, but I was too afraid of hurting your feelings. You put a lot of hard work into this for me and I didn't want to seem ungrateful." I said, looking down, a little ashamed.

"Don't worry about that. This can still work with the whole Vegas thing. It might even be fun." Alice tried to see things on the bright side.

"You can gamble and give cross dressers fashion advise." I said.

"Oh! You might be on to something there! I don't judge people's choices, but for god's sake lighten up on the blush!" She said, immediately perking up and going back to painting my nails.

After I'd told Alice, everyone else seemed like a piece of cake.

As predicted, Emmett and Jasper were excited about being able to party. And Rose was enthused with the idea of all the male strippers that would be around. Carlisle and Esme said they'd come to wherever we wanted to get married, as long as we were happy.

Everyone was a little surprised that we wanted to go today, but didn't waste much time in packing their suitcases for the trip. Carlisle called and arranged for the jet to be ready so we could leave by nine-thirty am. We figured that way we would be in Vegas by six pm. The jet would have to make a short stop in Texas to refuel, but that wouldn't take too long.

"Are you almost ready, future Mrs. Cullen?" Edward murmured into my neck as he came up behind me, wrapping his strong arms around my waist.

I shivered, abandoning the bag I'd been packing and melting back into his chest.

"Almost." I told him. "I've just got this bag to finish and we can go, but if you don't keep your hands and lips off me, I'll never get anything accomplished."

He chuckled warmly beside my ear, then pulled away and picked up the first bag I'd packed, going to load it onto the boat.

Cheese winded through my legs, looking up and meowing. I bent down and picked him up, snuggling him up to my chest. He'd gotten bigger, now almost ten months old. I missed my little ball of fur that I could fit in one of my hands, but he still acted very much like a kitten. Playing with balls and strings, rolling around, and trying to curl up on the pillows on the bed, much to Edward's aggravation.

I was a little worried about who would take care of him while everyone was gone for three or four days, but I had soon found a resolution.

We'd invited Maggie and Ben to come along with us, but Ben politely refused, saying he didn't do all that well around a lot of people. So instead of going with us, he agreed to stay here on the island for a few days to look after Cheese since we couldn't take him with us, obviously.

I kissed Cheese on the head, telling him I'd see him soon, and threw another shirt in and zipped the bag up, following Edward out. Jasper met me halfway, taking the bag from me like a proper southern gentleman.

Everyone piled into the boat, Emmett rushing to be the one to drive. I think he just liked going fast and scaring us when he'd hit a wave.

"I'm so going to Chippendale's when we get there." Rose said.

"We're having a bachelorette party!" Alice giggled.

"Whoa now, hang on." Edward interrupted. "My fiancé - soon to be wife - is not going anywhere near a bunch of male strippers."

"But you're going to have a bachelor party, aren't you?" Alice asked, looking at him innocently.

"Well… maybe… I don't know… I think Emmett has something he wants to do now that we're going to Vegas." Edward mumbled out, clearly knowing he was being backed into a corner.

"Then why can't us girls have a party?" She asked rhetorically. "Are we supposed to sit up in the hotel room like good little women while the men go out and get drunk and stuff dollar bills in g-strings?"

Edward looked to me for help, but I shrugged, enjoying the way Alice was making him squirm.

"Okay ladies, calm down. Everyone will get their fair share of half-naked people over the next couple days." Emmett called back, laughing as he started up the engine.

I rolled my eyes and sat back, watching as Maggie climbed into the boat after she said goodbye to Ben.

"Who's talkin' about naked people?" She asked, popping a piece of gum into her mouth.

"We're going to give Bella a proper bachelorette party." Rose answered her.

"Awesome. I've always wondered what it would be like to have a guy grinding his junk in my face to the beat of Lady Gaga." She said cheerfully.

I burst out giggling to which Edward frowned, pouting beside me.

The entire boat ride to the mainland went that way, Edward pouting, none too pleased at the idea of me being around half naked men all night, and Rose, Alice, and Maggie laughing and making jokes. Maggie even stood up on the boat, standing in front of Rose and proceeded to grind her hips only a few inches from Rose's face, mocking a stripper.

When we got to the airport, Edward seemed a little more excited, grinning as we boarded the jet. This plane trip was a bit tamer than the last one we had, Rose making sure Emmett had no squirt guns on him before he got on.

It seemed like forever before the pilot came over the speaker system and said we were landing in Dallas for our refuel.

"Are you sure you don't want to jump out of the plane while you've got the chance?" Edward asked me teasingly.

"Nope. My feet are nice and toasty, so no worries there." I smiled at him, but then I had to mess with him. "Unless I find a nice stripper in Vegas, then you are getting tossed to the curb."

Edward looked like he was taking me a little too seriously. "That's it, I'm going with you. I know it's not fair to ask you not to go, but the least I can do is go and make sure nobody gets too handsy."

"Edward! We'll be fine, I can take care of myself, plus Rose will be there. I don't think anyone will even notice I'm there with her around." I said.

"Trust me, you are plenty noticeable." He muttered.

"Hey, I should be worried about all those slutty girls pawing you." I told him.

"Aw baby don't worry, they can't touch the merchandise." Edward said, waving his hands over his body.

I rolled my eyes and elbowed him in the arm.

"_Our refuel is complete and we will be continuing to Las Vegas in a few moments_." The pilots voice came over the speakers.

Everyone settled back down, Alice snuggling into Jasper with a blanket wrapped around her. Rose and Maggie were intent on reading some magazine while Em played a game on his Nintendo. I curled up in my seat, resting my head on Edward's shoulder while the plane took off again.

"Why don't you take a nap, angel?" Edward suggested, running a finger across my cheekbone. "The time zone difference might mess with you if you don't."

I nodded, stifling a yawn as I did so. I was feeling a little tired, though I think that might have more to do with getting up so early. Edward and I had taken to not getting up until nine or ten in the morning, especially on days when he didn't have to go into work. Edward didn't go into the office much, maybe a couple times a week for a few hours, trading off with Emmett and Jasper.

Edward covered me up with a blanket and wrapped an arm around me.

**~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~SOR~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**

Vegas was… bright.

Neon signs were everywhere, high buildings that reminded me of being back in Seattle, except a hundred times more extreme. People were all over the sidewalks, going to nightclubs and casinos for the night.

It was already dark by the time we got off the plane, close to eight o'clock, but I knew that we'd still have hours to do everything. Alice would probably have us all out until three or four o'clock in the morning.

"We can check in and have an hour or two to relax and get ready, then we have all night to party." Alice said excitedly.

We were all piled into what Edward just called a car, but I would classify it as a limo.

"I think your father and I will just have a nice quiet night in our room." Esme said. I could not see Esme in a Chippendale's strip club, waving dollar bills around.

"Oh, come on dad." Emmett chuckled at Carlisle. "Are you telling me you don't want to go to a strip club and shove some dollars in a g-string?"

Carlisle cleared his throat and smiled at Esme, who was giving him a look that reminded me very much of the way Alice would look at Jasper or Edward.

"No, Emmett." He finally said.

Jasper was snickering at Carlisle's predicament and Edward just buried his face in my hair.

"Besides," Esme said casually, "I think I have a g-string of my own that I can wear tonight."

That stopped their snickering.

"Ewww!" The guys all exclaimed at once.

Maggie and Rose burst into laughter and I tried to covered up my giggles, but I was unsuccessful. Alice's face was scrunched up in disgust and reacted much like the guys.

"That's an image I could have lived the rest of my life without." She muttered, shuddering.

"Oh my god Mrs. C, that's awesome!" Maggie laughed, leaning forward to high five Esme.

"Are we almost at the fucking hotel?" Emmett grumbled.

"We're only a couple blocks away." Rose answered him a little breathlessly, trying to calm down.

Not five minutes later, the driver stopped and we all got, Emmett and Jasper muttering all the way. Edward was just shaking his head as he helped with the bags.

The hotel was everything I thought one in Vegas would look like. Grand entryway, fountains and sculptures, columns, and bright lights.

Carlisle and Esme went to check in and get our room keys, and Alice pulled something out of her purse.

"Who wants to hit the casino?" She asked us all, looking through what looked like a pamphlet.

_I didn't know Vegas had a pamphlet of casinos._

"We can spend a couple hours playing around, then it's bachelor party time!" Emmett said, punching Edward and Jasper in the arm.

"I want to take a shower first." I said, feeling not so fresh after an eight hour plane ride.

"Ditto." Rose said, to which Maggie and Alice both nodded in agreement.

"Alright then, game plan - go up to our rooms, take a shower, change, whatever else. Then meet back down here in the lobby at ten, go to a casino until midnight, then we go our separate ways - guys do their own thing and us girls go off and have some fun of our own - and we get done when we get done." Alice said, always the one to be the planner.

"I feel like we should break the huddle and shout something…" Jasper said, chuckling at Alice.

"Don't make fun of me sweetie, I'll be around a lot of sexy, sweaty, half-naked men later." Alice said sweetly.

"Come on kids!" Esme called, waving us toward the elevators.

**~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~SOR~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**

"Give big daddy some money." Emmett muttered under his breath, shaking the dice in his hand.

The dice rolled around the green felt table, everyone around holding their breath as they slowed, finally stopping on a four and a two.

Not the numbers he wanted.

"Damn it!" Emmett yelled, throwing more chips on the table.

I didn't understand half the games they were playing, I just stuck to the slot machines. Emmett made fun of me a little, but so far I was three hundred dollars ahead of him.

Edward was a fucking card shark. He played poker like a pro, playing hands that I didn't even know were possible. I was worried the casino would kick us out.

"You know, maybe if you stop calling yourself 'big daddy' you might actually win." Rose told him, sipping on her long island ice tea.

"But I like saying it." Emmett whined.

Rose snorted and laughed, taking another drink.

"I won another hundred dollars!" Alice said excitedly as she ran up to the table, Jasper trailing behind her.

"Yeah, after you spent almost two hundred." Jasper chuckled, leaning down to kiss the crown of her head.

"Small victories, baby." She told him, patting his chest.

"Well I'm out almost seven hundred." Emmett said, finally stepping away from the table.

"I'm up three hundred." I told them cheerfully, taking a drink of my strawberry daiquiri.

"That's just some freaky new bride luck." Em grumbled. "Maybe I should take you over to the roulette table."

"You are not using my fiancé to help you gamble." Edward came up behind us, wrapping an arm around me. He'd been over at the black-jack table playing a few hands.

"Please! We still have twenty minutes left and I need to win some money back." Emmett pleaded.

"Use your own wife for good luck." Edward nodded toward where Rose and Maggie were standing together in front of a slot machine.

Maggie was a sight, and god I loved her.

While Alice, Rose and I had dressed in skinny jeans or dresses, Maggie had gone a very different route with her clothes.

First was the very bright pink cut off shorts, paired with an equally bright pair of converse tennis shoes, but what I loved and Alice about had a stroke over was the grey and black hoodie sweater she was wearing, a giant cat face on the front. And when she pulled the hood up, it had a pair of cat ears sticking up.

Alice couldn't believe that Maggie wanted to go out in public like that, but Rose and I applauded her.

When Alice had asked if she was off her rocker, Maggie told her that she shouldn't have to dress up when the guys she'd be throwing money at would grind all over her no matter what she was wearing, so she might as well be comfortable.

_Fair point._

"I'd like a few minutes with my fiancé, before you drag her away to… _that place_." Edward said, frowning a little, then we walked over to where one of the many bars were.

"You do know that I was kidding about what I said earlier about running off with one of the male strippers, right?" I asked, squeezing his hands.

"I know, I know, I just don't like the idea of a bunch of guys all over you." He told me, pulling me into his chest.

"Well how do you think I feel thinking about practically naked blonde bimbos rubbing all over you?" I muttered into his shirt.

"I won't be touching." He chuckled a little.

"If I find out you did, I'll cut your hands off." I threatened, only half serious.

"I'll just be sitting there while Em and Jasper make fools of themselves, drinking a couple beers and imaging what you will look like when you walk down the aisle… and later that night." He smirked.

I stood up on my tip-toes to kiss him, wrapping my arms around his neck, squeaking a little as he gripped my waist and lifted me off the ground.

"I love you, Edward Cullen. Now go enjoy your last night as a non-married man." I said, kissing him again quickly.

"I love you too, Bella Swan. I hope you don't get cold feet between now and tomorrow." Edward said, running his hands through my hair.

"Come on you two!" Jasper yelled from a couple yards away. "You'll see each other again in twelve hours!"

Edward flipped him the finger before releasing me, Maggie coming over to put her arm around my shoulders and lead me away.

**~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~SOR~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**

What the hell had Rose gotten us into?

The four of us were sitting in a club, the lights dimmed down in an effort to try to create a more 'romantic' setting.

At least that's what Alice said.

Women were everywhere, varying in age from their twenties to sixties. I'd never really thought about a strip club with men strippers, I just had a vague image of men in odd costumes dancing around. But now that I was seeing it up and close and personal, I realized that it wasn't much different from that of a strip club with women strippers.

Well muscled, half-naked men dressed in ridiculous costumes and outfits were traipsing around the club, flirting with the women and dancing around. Not to mention the ones on stage in nothing but their underwear.

All I could do was shrink down in my seat between Alice and Maggie, scared about what was going to happen tonight.

Jokingly, Maggie had gotten me a little plastic tiara and veil combo, marking me as a bride to be, which I was not too thrilled about.

"Oh come on, Bella! Every girl has got to do this, it's like a right of passage!" Maggie exclaimed, watching a man dressed in what was supposed to be some kind of sexy doctor outfit. All he was wearing was a pair of underwear, a lab coat, and a stethoscope around his neck.

I wondered Edward was doing, if he was enjoying himself or if he was feeling like I was right now.

"Stop thinking." Rose nudged me. "You're supposed to enjoy the man candy, not sit there and think about the man you've already got."

I stuck my tongue out at her and turned to look around the club some more. I had to roll my eyes at all the middle aged women drooling on themselves. Didn't they have husbands of their own? Or were they so desperate that they settled for this?

No matter how the men here flirted and pretended like you were the most important thing in the world, I wasn't so blind as to believe it wasn't an act. It was their job to act like they liked you, which was why I wasn't so excited about all of this.

A blonde man came walking up to us, wearing nothing but a pair of leather chaps and cowboy boots.

Oh God.

I slid back in my seat further, trying to remember that this was supposed to be fun.

"Howdy ladies! How are we doin' tonight?" The half-naked man greeted us in an obviously fake southern accent.

_Jasper needs to get in here and show him what it really sounds like._

I took a gulp of my cranberry vodka, wanting to be thoroughly tipsy for this.

Ben had hooked me up with a fake ID so that I could drink while I was here, and I needed to remember to buy him something very expensive to say thank you.

Rose leaned forward to flirt with him, twirling her hair around her finger. I don't know why she was trying so hard, like Maggie said - he had to act like he liked her no matter what.

She was saying something to him that I couldn't hear over the music and other women screaming and laughing, but I had a feeling it was something I wouldn't like. That feeling was only reaffirmed when Rose pointed at me.

The man smiled and nodded down at her, then made his way over to me.

"I'm going to go get us drinks." Rose said quickly, getting up and practically running from me.

_Yeah, you better run. You're so going to pay for this later._

"Hello, beautiful lady." He came over to stand in front of me. "Your friend tells me you're gettin' married tomorrow. Such a travesty, taking a pretty girl like you off the market - but I'm told that this is to be your proper send off from single life. "

He leaned down, his abdomen muscles clenching noticeably, and took my hand in his and tried to pull me up.

"Oh, no thank you." I tried to get out of anything he had in mind.

"How about just a lap dance, baby?" Maggie giggled from beside me.

The guy shrugged, obviously not too phased by my refusal, instead inching closer to me as I tried to lean as far back as possible.

For the next five minutes, I swear to God I was about to burst into flames from the amount of embarrassment I was in.

The guy - or Jackson as he told us to call him - took his job _very _seriously.

I was smothered in muscles, leather, and sweat as he dance and grinded, the girls cackling like fucking witches the entire time, reaching over to shove money in his ass-less chaps.

Once he was finally done and sauntered away with a wink, I turned on Rose.

"That it never happening again." I growled.

All she could do was laugh, so I reached over and smacked her on the arm.

"Isn't this supposed to be _my _bachelorette party, can't I have a say in what we do?" I asked desperately.

"Uh, it doesn't exactly work that way. See, our job as bridesmaids and such is to give you a night of nearly naked men and booze, whether you like it or not. That's half the fun." Alice giggled, downing the rest of whatever alcoholic beverage she'd gotten this time.

"Guys, maybe we should do something she wants to do now that we've had our fun." Maggie stood up for me.

"Well, you all figure this out, I'm going to call Emmett and make sure they're not in jail yet." Rose said, standing up and making her way to the bathrooms, her perfectly curvy figure swaying to the beat of the music the entire way.

"If you could have sex with a woman, who would it be?" Maggie asked out of the blue.

"What?" I asked.

"Oh come on, you've got to have a girl crush on someone." She said to me, tilting her head to the side knowingly.

"Kate Beckinsale." Alice answered quickly, sucking a lemon into her mouth. "Her ass in that leather outfit in Underworld… I could get into that."

"Very nice choice…" Maggie said. "Mine is Eva Green. And when she has dark hair, like in _James Bond_, not _Dark Shadows_."

"Karen Gillan." I said quickly.

"Who's that?" Alice asked.

"She's on Doctor Who, that red haired Scottish chick." I told her.

"Oh! Yeah, she's pretty." Alice agreed.

"You just like Doctor Who." Maggie snickered.

"Hey, there is nothing wrong with The Doctor." I defended. I loved my Doctor Who.

Rose came sauntering back over just then, a not too happy look on her face.

"Rosie, what girl would you have sex with given he chance?" Maggie asked her.

"You." She replied, blowing a kiss and winking at her.

Maggie puckered her lips up and made kissing sounds, playfully smacking Rose's ass.

"Do we have to round up bail money?" Alice asked.

"No, they're still at a club, but Edward is acting like he's about to be burnt at the stake." She said, turning to me.

"Why? What's wrong?" I asked.

"He turns down any girl that Em and Jazz try to get for him and they said that he just sits there drinking beer after beer." She explained. "He's bringing down his own bachelor party."

_Oh Edward._

"I have an idea."

**~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~SOR~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**

"I don't want to look too slutty." I said to Rose as she helped me zip up my boots.

"Honey, you're in a strip club - there are women in here wearing a lot worse and less than a trench coat over their undies." Rose said, fluffing out my hair.

I nodded to myself, knowing she had a point.

The four of us were currently squeezed into a dressing room in the back of the strip club Emmett had told Rose they were at. Alice had talked to the manager, sliding him more money than I wanted to think about, and explained what we had in mind. Of course he had agreed, leaving us to our business as he counted out his newly acquired hundred dollar bills.

I had realized that neither Edward or I were enjoying our parties separately, so I came up with a little plan to fix that.

"Okay, remember - private room four. I don't want you accidentally walking into something freaky." Alice giggled.

Yeah.

I shuddered to think of some of the stuff that went on around here.

"Do you think you can play dirty?" Maggie teased.

"Don't underestimate me." I countered.

"Okay, okay. Stop flirting with each other and get your sexy ass going." Rose snickered, smacking me on said ass.

I made my way out of the dressing area, feeling a tiny bit self-conscious, but I just had to remind myself to act like I fit in.

I struggled a little to walk in my black leather knee high boots, the only sign of my nerves was the way my fingers kept adjusting the trench coat I was wearing. Even with the coat, a better half of my thighs were on display and the neckline of the coat plunged down well in-between my breasts. The only other thing I had on was the small, red lacy bra and panty set underneath.

Spotting Edward and the others in the far corner, I slowly crept over, trying not to be noticed.

I walked up directly behind him, my heels clicking against the floor and he still didn't pay me any attention. Jasper saw me though, and I held my finger up to my lips, motioning for him not to say anything. He looked between me and Edward and chuckled, going back to staring at the girl on stage who was wrapping herself in what seemed to be a very unnatural position around a pole.

I tapped Edward on the shoulder, expecting him to turn around, but that didn't happen.

"I'm sorry, but I don't want a dance." Edward said without even looking up from his beer.

"Oh really? Well then, I suppose I'll have to find some other man to give a lap dance to." I mused, pretending like I was looking around for another man.

Edward's head snapped around so fast I was worried he had broke his neck.

"Bella?" He breathed out, a smile crossing his face. "What are you doing here?"

"Well…" I leaned over him, placing my hands on either side of his chair, giving him a great view of my cleavage down my coat. "Emmett mentioned on the phone to Rose that you weren't having much fun, so I decided to come by and cheer you up."

"Really?" He choked out, his eyes zeroed in on my breasts.

"Do you still not want that dance?" I asked in what I hoped was an alluring tone, running my pointer finger down the middle of his chest.

It took him a moment, but he seemed to understand what I was doing.

"Now that I've thought about it, I think I will have that dance." He grinned, leaning back in his chair to give me room.

"No, no, no… for what I have in mind, you will _not_ want Emmett and Jasper watching." I reached out and grabbed his hand, tugging him up from the chair.

I led him back to the private room Alice had arranged for us to have for the hour, nudging him through the door and firmly closing and locking it behind us.

There was a red, plush velvet chair a few feet away, and placing my hand on Edward's chest, I slowly pushed him back until the back of his legs bumped into it and he sat down clumsily, not taking his eyes from me. I moved so I was straddling his lap, slowly snaking my hands up his chest to rest on his shoulders.

I had no idea how to do this except for the few tips the girls had given me, but I was fairly confident I could pull something off.

I leaned back a little, my ass resting right on Edward's knees, and I slowly brought my hands to the tied knot in the trench coat. Edward's eyes were glued to my hands, watching my every movement as I unwound the knot, letting the ties hang loose, exposing a gap down my front.

Tilting forward slightly, my lips brushed against his in a feather light touch before I pulled away quickly, smirking at him as he pouted.

"Oh, and no touching - keep your hands on the chair." I winked.

Edward made a frustrated sound in the back of his throat, but his fingers tightened around the arms of the chair.

"Good boy." I teasingly whispered into his ear.

"Angel…" He groaned.

"Shhh…" I hushed.

Pushing the lapels of my coat across my chest, I ever so slowly moved it over my shoulders and down my arms until it stopped at my elbows, revealing my bra and my breasts that were practically spilling out of it.

Edward was breathing heavily, his eyes wide as he tried to take everything in at once.

I smiled to myself, loving that I was making him feel like that.

"Just sit back and relax." I told him.

"I don't think that's a possibility right now." He said roughly, shifting his hips.

"Oh? Why not?" I teased, running my hand down his chest, my fingernails scraping against him.

"Because you are just too f-fucking sexy." He ground out, his voice catching a little as my fingers reached his jeans.

"You think so?" I whimpered, leaning forward so my breasts were directly in his face while I slowly undid his button and zipper.

"Holy fuck, angel." Edward gasped, his right hand going to his hair and gripping it tightly.

I left his pants open, but didn't move to pull them off, instead settling down right on his lap, my entire torso pressing against his chest.

"Now, let's talk about why you're not enjoying your bachelor party. What's wrong?" I asked, like I wasn't perched in my lingerie on his clearly hard dick.

"I uh… I just don't agree with Emmett and Jasper's idea of a fun time." He choked out, struggling to keep looking at my face.

"This is supposed to be a fun night for you." I said.

"Well, it's getting a hell of a lot better now." He smirked.

"Let's see if we can make it even better." I said, brushing my lips over his, running them down his chin and neck.

I pulled back, shrugging the coat the rest of the way off and threw it across the room. Edward was clearly struggling with the not touching me rule, his fingers clenching into fists beside us.

"What could I do to make this night special?" I asked casually, wiggling around in his lap.

"This… is a very good start." Edward breathed out.

I giggled and wrapped my arms around his neck, kissing and nipping at his neck playfully.

"Can I _please _touch you?" He begged.

"Hmmm…" I hummed, acting like I was thinking about it. "I don't know… I'm having fun the way things are going."

"Isn't this supposed to be my night?" Edward raised an eyebrow, teasing me back.

"Very good point, Mr. Cullen." I said.

Instantly, Edward's hands were on my waist, pulling me closer and kissing me, his lips moving against mine urgently. I plunged my fingers through his hair, tugging and stroking as he worked his tongue past my lips.

His hands skimmed up my ribs until he was cupping my breasts through the bra, this thumbs running along the swelling flesh over the edge of the red lace. I reluctantly pulled away from his mouth to breathe and he went straight for my jaw, kissing down the side of my neck.

"You're so fucking perfect." He murmured almost reverently against my skin.

"I do try my best." I laughed breathlessly.

"This is… the best bachelor party… _ever_." Edward said between kisses.

"Are you sure you don't want to go back out there and party with the guys? I guess I did just show up and dragged you away." I asked, feeling a little self-conscious now.

"Oh, trust me angel, you can do this any time you want." He said enthusiastically.

I grinned, fully reassured that I hadn't ruined his night, and went back to kissing his full lips. His hands were everywhere, running over and squeezing my hips, waist, breasts, and every other inch of my body he could reach. I pulled at his hair, tugging his shirt in frustration at not being able to fling it off and feel his skin against mine. That would be a bad thing. That would lead to us having sex right here in this chair and we were supposed to be strong and wait until tomorrow for that.

_Why the hell did I enforce that rule?_

Now I was having to follow it and I hated it.

Edward's fingers maneuvered my bra straps off my shoulders, his mouth skimming over the little bits of skin it revealed. With every kiss and lick, that little piece of my mind nagging about waiting until tomorrow slithered deeper and deeper into the shadows.

"Can I take this off?" Edward asked softly, his fingers dipping into the cups of my bra.

I only thought about it for three seconds before I was reaching behind my back to take it off myself. I flung it away just like the coat and gasped as Edward's mouth immediately sucked my left nipple into his mouth.

"Edward…" I moaned, digging my fingers into his shoulders for balance.

I felt him smile against my skin, sucking sharply as his tongue traced around the delicate pink flesh.

I couldn't stop my hips as they grinded down onto him, both of us groaning as the familiar sensations shot through us. Edward's fingers slid down my lower back, dipping into my underwear and squeezing my ass as I repeated the actions over and over, sliding myself over his cock until I could feel the heat and pressure inside building and tightening.

A loud knock interrupted what he was doing and we both jumped like children caught doing something they know they shouldn't.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything nasty, but you have five minutes left before someone else comes knocking." Maggie's voice carried through the door.

I shook my head, trying to clear out the obsessive need to fuck him, and leaned as far away from him as possible.

"I think we almost broke our own rules." I panted, smoothing my now messy hair back.

"Angel, no offence, but I can't really say that I care too much." He muttered, chuckling a little.

_Touché Mr. Cullen, touché._

* * *

**Cock blocking is wrong, kids.**

**If I stay on schedule, I should have the second epilogue posted next Sunday._  
_**

**Until next time. Thank you for reading and every single review you leave me.**


	14. Epilogue: Part 2

**Long story short - so sorry about disappearing on you guys. Lots of crazy stuff has happened in the past couple months. Those of you who are on Facebook know what I'm talking about.**

**But finally, here it is. The second epilogue of Sold On Revenge, and the final chapter. I hope you guys like it, I'll see you at the bottom.**

* * *

I was about to kill whoever had the bright idea to create the alarm clock.

Seriously, did the guy hate the entire human race?

He'd have had to in order to put in such an annoying beeping sound.

"Someone shut that thing off before we have to pay for it, because I'm about to throw it into the wall." Rose mumbled from somewhere.

I reached out blindly, hitting the table a couple of times before I found the alarm, pushing the correct button to stop it.

"God bless you." Rose said.

I pulled myself out of a pile of pillows, looking around me to see Rose and Maggie in bed beside me. I didn't see Alice at first, but as I looked around the room, I saw her sprawled across the loveseat on the other side of the room.

"Oh Jesus, what did we do last night?" Maggie groaned, peeling herself off the sheets.

"There were strippers…" I said, my voice a little hoarse.

"And lots and lots of alcohol." Alice giggled so hard that she tumbled off the loveseat onto the carpet.

_Well, I think she's still a little drunk._

"What time is it?" Rose muttered, slurring a little as she tried to sit up.

I slowly opened my eyes, thanking baby Jesus that the curtains were closed, cloaking the room in relative darkness.

The bright red numbers on the clock were blaring _11:43 am_.

"It's almost noon." I grumbled back, rolling over onto my back.

"We need to get ready!" Alice perked up, jumping up from the floor and stumbling a little.

"Why?" Maggie moaned.

"We have a spa appointment at one o'clock, that's why." Alice answered, stumbling into the bathroom.

I lay on my back, trying to think about how we got back to the hotel room.

After mine and Edward's little escapade at the strip club, I said goodbye to him and slipped out with the girls. They giggled and teased, asking for all kinds of details that I wasn't too willing to give.

We went to a normal dance club after that, having drinks, taking turns dancing with each other and just talking. It was about my third or fourth shot of vodka that I started spilling the dirty details. We kept the drinks flowing all night and after a point I didn't remember anything at all. I remember doing shots of something purple with Maggie and Alice, trying to see who could do the most inside of thirty seconds, then it's all a big black blur.

"We got really, really drunk didn't we?" I asked rhetorically.

"I haven't had that good of a time since college." Maggie sighed.

Alice came out of the bathroom, looking a little less disheveled and walking straighter.

"The bride needs to take a shower now." She announced, pointing at me sternly.

"I need coffee!" I exclaimed in protest.

"Take a shower and coffee and breakfast/lunch will be here when you get done." She said, pulling me out of bed.

I grumbled under my breath, but the more I thought about it, the more enticing a shower seemed.

Peeling off my clothes that I still had on from last night, I climbed into the warm water and just stood under the steady stream, trying to wake up. Shampooing my hair quickly and scrubbing the drunk and dirty feeling off my skin, I rinsed off and got out, wrapping myself in one of the fluffy hotel robes.

As promised, a cart full of breakfast foods, coffee, and orange juice was waiting when I exited the bathroom.

"I call the shower next!" Rose shouted, stumbling out of bed.

I poured myself some coffee and grabbed a piece of bacon off a platter, paddling back over to the bed.

"We have an appointment in an hour for the spa basics - massages, waxing, pedicures, facials… I think we can even do one of those mud bath things." Alice mused.

"Sitting in a pool of mud doesn't sound like fun to me." I said.

"It's supposed to be very relaxing and good for the skin." She told me.

"As long as it doesn't get in my hair, I'm good." Maggie said, digging into a blueberry waffle.

I snorted and accepted the plate of eggs, bacon, and toast that Alice thrust into my hands.

"Trust me, you'll want to eat that. It'll help with the queasy feeling in your stomach." She said matter-of-factly.

My stomach did feel a little sick, all of the alcohol sloshing around in there. So without protest, I did as she said and ate, feeling the toast hit my stomach and soothed the rumbling.

Maggie and Alice took quick showers after Rose got out, not bothering to do anything special since we were going to the spa. I was especially happy when Alice told us we could wear sweatpants. I had learned long ago to listen to and not argue about what Alice told me to wear.

So I grabbed my pair of grey sweats and a regular white v-neck, laughing a little when Maggie came out in her _My Little Pony _sweatpants.

"You know you like it." She teased, shaking her pony covered ass at me.

"Come on, let's go relax and get covered in mud." Rose grabbed my hand, pulling me out of our room with her.

**~*~*~*~*~*~*~SOR~*~*~*~*~*~*~**

"I have mud in my butt crack." I deadpanned.

"Think relaxing thoughts." Alice said.

"Mud… in my butt crack." I repeated.

Maggie was to the right of me, obviously trying not to laugh too loudly.

"I think it tries to exfoliate your ass crack too." Rose said dryly.

"The massages and face masks were great, and I loved every second of them, but this is too much." I said.

"I agree, I have mud in all the wrong the places." Maggie said, shifting around in her bath of mud.

"I kind of like it." Alice sighed.

"Well, I've been in here ten minutes and I already have clumps of mud in my cleavage. So I'm going to clean this off and go have a nice shiatsu massage." Rose said, climbing out of the tub carefully, covered in mud, and wrapped herself up in a towel.

I thought that a shiatsu massage sounded pretty damn good, so I followed her out, Maggie trailing behind me, slipping and sliding with all the mud.

For the next two hours, we were thoroughly pampered, massaged, exfoliated, waxed, and sweated out all of our toxins. At least that's what the spa worker said when she put us in the sauna.

I hate that fucking sweatbox.

It wasn't until three o'clock when we had done everything that the spa could offer and we went off to have a late lunch. And I'd been forbidden to see or call Edward in the spirit of the tradition of not seeing the groom before the wedding, which was very frustrating since we walked by his room twice.

"We have seven hours before the wedding." Alice started. "That gives us four hours of free time and then three hours to get ready. Although, we might not need all of that time since it's just a Vegas wedding."

She was still a little sour about us sort of eloping, but understood that it was our choice and supported us.

"You'll need to do my hair and make-up, but other than that all I need is to put on my dress and drive to the chapel." I tried to make her seem useful, which I knew was what the problem was. Alice just needed to be able to do something.

"Where _is _your dress, anyway?" Maggie asked over her water.

"In a locked vault." I chuckled.

"No, I had it wrapped and packed carefully and put on the jet with us, and it's currently in the room in a suitcase in the dress box." Alice told her.

"I feel like I'm in _Mission Impossible _and we're carrying a top secret package." I stage whispered to Maggie.

"Did you want a ruined wedding dress? I don't trust it with anyone. Not to mention that is a _Carolina Herrera _gown and a lot of women would tear your hair out to get there hands on it." Alice said seriously.

"Yes mother." I mocked, earning a look from her.

"Pool." Rose said quickly, sensing the beginning of an argument. "I vote we spend the rest of our time at the pool. Scope out some sexy lifeguards… a cabana boy or two."

"I second that." I said, mentally counting out the whole lifeguard thing.

We ate our lunch, talking and joking, and then went up to our rooms to get ready to go to the pool. As we passed Edward's room, Rose had to pull me down the hall to keep from knocking on the door.

I couldn't wait to see Edward later tonight as I was walking down that aisle.

**~*~*~*~*~*~*~SOR~*~*~*~*~*~*~**

"You look so fucking pretty!" Maggie squealed, clapping her hands together.

"Maggie Tanner, language!" Esme scolded.

"Sorry Mrs. Cullen." She apologized, looking thoroughly admonished.

I laughed lightly and smoothed a hand down the front of my dress nervously.

My hair was done up fairly simply; braided along the sides, bringing it back to a bun at the nape of my neck, my make-up had been done quite beautifully by the talented Alice, and my dress was now on without any problems.

It was beautiful; strapless, the bodice looked like the fabric was wrapped around in an almost Grecian style, a thin silver jeweled band around the waist, the rest of the dress flowing loosely down my body. The shoes I got with the dress were white satin, only a three inch heel and intricate little silver and pearl flowers were encrusted on the heels.

My inner girly-girly was brought out when I saw them and I just had to get them.

"You do look very lovely, Bella." Esme said, smiling at me in the mirror.

"Thank you." I said, blushing.

"You're such a pretty bride!" Alice gushed beside me.

We were getting ready in the backroom of the small chapel Edward and I had chosen. It wasn't anything super cheesy and definitely no Elvis impersonators, just a regular minister.

A knock sounded on the door and Rose went to answer, Jasper peeking his head through the opening.

"Everything is ready out here whenever you are." He said with a grin.

"Are you sure Edward's still out there?" I asked, afraid that he had run away at the last minute.

"He looks a little like he's gonna puke because he's so nervous, but he's still out there and can't wait to see you." Jasper told me.

"Do you need the pep talk again?" Alice asked me.

"No, no… I'm ready." I said confidently.

"Go back out tell everyone that we're on." Alice said to Jasper, nodding as he ducked back out the door.

Rose and Esme picked and plucked at me one last time, making sure everything was in place.

"You're perfect." Esme assured me with a smile.

"Thank you, Esme." I said.

"My son is so lucky marrying a girl like you." She said.

"No, I think I'm the lucky one." I told her.

"I love Edward with my whole heart, but he wasn't always the easiest child to handle. And then he grew up to be a little more wild than I would have hoped. But then you come into his life and it's almost like you centered him, calmed him down and brought out all of the good I knew was inside him." Esme said, squeezing my hand gently.

I felt my eyes water a little bit at her words, fluttering my eyelashes in an attempt to not shed any tears.

"Oh, I didn't mean to make you cry, sweetie." She said, grabbing a Kleenex off the vanity and gently dabbing under my eyes.

"No crying!" Alice popped up. "I do not have the time to redo your mascara."

"I'm fine, I promise." I told them both.

"Alright, it's time!" Alice squealed, jumping up and down on the balls of her feet.

"Are you sure you want to be tied to Edward for the rest of your life?" Maggie asked teasingly. "I mean, he can be a handful and sometimes you just want to throttle him - that can be a lot to deal with for the next sixty years or so."

"I think I can keep him in check." I winked at her.

"Uh-huh. I bet you can, sweet thang." She replied in a funny accent.

I burst out laughing with her, trying to recover quickly as Carlisle stepped in.

He would be walking me down the aisle.

I had called Renee and Charlie, telling them of the change in schedule, hoping they could still make it. They had both told me it wasn't possible. Renee was busy with work and trying to console Phil, finally having come to the conclusion that Riley was gone and never coming back. And Charlie grumbled about not liking me getting married in that 'city of sex and sin', especially since it was Edward I was marrying. Charlie didn't like Edward, arguing that he put me in danger and didn't care about my safety.

Basically, my own father refused to come to my wedding.

That had stung a bit.

But I sucked it up and told them that we were throwing a kind of after wedding party on the island in a couple weeks after Edward and I got back from our honeymoon, and he and Renee both said they would come to that.

Rose had cheered me up, saying that at least we could have more fun without the watchful eye of my parents. And if they didn't want to be at their only daughters wedding, it was their loss.

Carlisle smiled warmly at me, coming before me and taking my hands, kissing my forehead in a fatherly manner.

"I'm so happy that you'll officially be my daughter." He said kindly.

"Esme and Alice just stopped me from crying, I don't need to start again." I told him with a smile. "But thank you, that means a lot to me that you think of me like that."

"You have been a part of this family for a year now, getting married to Edward just makes you officially a Cullen." He said.

"Thank you for walking me down the aisle." I said.

"Well, no offence to you, but your father is being incredibly stubborn and stupid by missing one of the most important moments of both your lives. I know that one day he'll regret it, because no matter who Alice decided to marry, I wouldn't have missed it for the world." Carlisle said with a sad sigh, squeezing my hands.

I could hear the music start up out in the chapel, marking our queue.

"I suppose that's our signal." He said, holding his arm out for me.

I tucked my hand into the crook of his elbow, letting him lead me out of the room and into the hallway entrance before we entered the main part of the chapel.

Alice and Rose were in front of us, in their beautiful blue bridesmaids dresses, Maggie having gone out to sit with Esme.

The large arched wooden doors opened, revealing the beautiful white and gold room that I was going to get married in.

Rose and Alice started their slow, even walk down the aisle, Carlisle and I following just as they reached the end.

I was looking down at my feet the first few steps, trying to make sure I didn't trip as I plucked up the courage to look up and find Edward.

He was standing there, staring at me as I made my way to him. He looked so handsome, even more so than usual. He was wearing a black tuxedo, silver accents on the suit, his shoes a shiny black - so much unlike his usual jeans and t-shirts or casual button-ups.

His hair was the only thing that remained unchanged, in it's constant state of copper disarray.

A grin as big as California was plastered across his face, his green eyes bright with excitement and happiness.

We finally reached him, Carlisle taking my hand in his and placing it in Edward's warm one.

"Hi." I greeted softly, a little shy.

"Hi." He said back, that broad grin still in place. "You're so fucking beautiful, angel."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Esme cover her eyes at his curse word, but she softly laughed it off.

"You don't look too bad yourself." I said to Edward, eyeing his black tux.

"Alice insisted." He stage whispered.

I giggled and looked to the elderly minister standing just a couple feet away, ready and waiting to marry us.

"Shall we begin?" He questioned with a small smile, obviously used to couples like us.

Edward nodded a _yes _and turned his full attention to me.

The minister began reciting the usual speech - _we are gathered here today_… so on and so on.

I found that I couldn't listen to half of what he was saying, too focused on Edward and feeling of complete joy inside me.

Edward was holding my hands, his thumbs rubbing against the backs of my hands, occasionally squeezing them and giving me a blinding smile.

When it finally came to the part where I needed to listen, I put a little more effort into it.

"Rings?" The minister asked, looking expectantly between Rose and Emmett. They produced our wedding rings; a platinum band for Edward and a white gold ring for me.

"Do you, Edward Cullen, take Isabella Swan to be your lawfully wedded wife. For better or for worse, in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer." The minister said to Edward.

"I do." Edward said, not looking away from my eyes, sliding the ring onto my finger.

"And do you, Isabella Swan, take Edward Cullen to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

"I do." I couldn't stop grinning up at him as I worked the ring onto his.

"By the power invested in me by the state of Nevada, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may now kiss the bride." The minister finished.

Edward wasted no time, his hand coming up to cup the back of my neck as he leaned down and captured my lips. We kept it relatively chaste… for about ten seconds, then Edward's tongue darted out, running along my bottom lip, and I parted mine.

"Hey, save it for the honeymoon, man." I heard Emmett mutter behind him.

We broke apart, smiling at his words.

Carlisle, Esme, and Maggie all stood up from the pew, clapping and looking thrilled for us. Emmett and Jasper were snickering at our impromptu make-out session and Alice and Rose looked absolutely smitten.

"We don't have any cake, but we did manage to get these." Alice said, handing Edward and I two red velvet cupcakes, slathered in cream cheese frosting with a mini figurine of a bride and groom on each one.

"They're adorable!" I laughed, licking some frosting off my finger.

"Now shove it in each other's face." Maggie clapped her hands together enthusiastically.

"I'm not shoving a cupcake in Bella's face." Edward frowned.

_He won't... but I will._

Without another second going by, I pulled the figurine off and smushed the cupcake right into Edward's mouth.

Somebody let out a squeal of laughter, but I was too focused on Edward's face to look around. He looked shocked, wiping a glob of frosting off his chin and licking some off his lips.

I pressed my hand to my mouth, trying desperately not to burst into a giggle fit.

"I love you..." I said as a way of an apology.

"Love you too, angel." He said, bringing his own cupcake up to the side of my face, rubbing it in.

I cried out in surprise, flinging chunks of cupcake off with a wipe of my hand. Frosting was still smothered around my face, to which Edward swiped his finger through and licked it off. How he managed to be sexy like that I had to fucking clue.

Rose helped me clean my face off, while Edward just kept eating the frosting off of his with a wide grin.

"Here are your passports." Maggie handed them to Edward, winking suggestively.

"Thank you." He replied, tucking them into the inside of his jacket.

"Now, go be happy and married and do disgusting things I don't want to hear about!" She giggled.

Edward held my hand as we walked back down the aisle, exiting the little chapel with huge smiles on our faces. A limo was waiting for us outside, Edward or Alice's doing I figured, with the words _'Just Married' _written across the back window in white marker.

"That is so cliché." I laughed, pointing at the words.

"Hey, Emmett wanted to attach cans to the back of the car, so we should consider ourselves lucky it's just the writing." Edward said.

He opened the door of the limo, sweeping his arm out.

"After you, Mrs. Cullen."

I blushed a little at my new name.

Bella Cullen.

Mrs. Edward Cullen.

I was a Cullen. I was officially apart of a family that I loved and who loved me. People who seemed to care more about me than my own family.

I had to face it - my family was horrible. Charlie missed my only wedding because he was too damn stubborn to get over his personal feelings toward Edward, even for a few hours. Renee was flighty and thought it was more important to stay with Phil, who's son sold me and tried to kill me.

There hadn't been a second that Rose, Em, Jasper, Alice, Esme, or Carlisle never cared about me in one way or another.

And I had been a stranger Edward brought into their home.

"What's wrong?" Edward's concerned voice came to me.

I noticed I was crying and quickly moved to wipe away the tears.

"Nothing. I was just thinking about how wonderful your entire family is compared to mine." I sniffled.

"Oh Bella." He sighed, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and bringing me to lean into his side. "Your family loves you, they're just a little… dysfunctional when it comes to what's important. And besides, having a few disagreements here and there is better than what it could be."

"My brother tried to cut my throat." I deadpanned.

"Step-brother." Edward pointed out strongly. "And he doesn't count, he was selfish and never cared about you to begin with. Plus he had problems of his own - many of which included some extreme mental issues."

"Okay, enough talk of that bastard." I dismissed Riley. "I just think that your family is made up of the most amazing people I've ever met… and now I'm apart of that. It makes me happy. So technically, these are happy tears." I smiled a little as I pointed to my still watery eyes.

"Those are the only kind of tears I want from you, ever." He said, cupping my face and brushing his thumb gently under my eye.

I laid my head against his shoulder, snuggling into him and relaxing as the limo drove on.

"Have I told you yet how beautiful you look?" Edward asked, his eyes raking over me.

"I think just once or twice." I beamed up at him.

"And this dress… amazing." He told me softly, his hand running over the fabric at my waist.

"We're _married_." I said in awe, completely out of no where. I think it was still sinking in.

"Yes, we are." Edward chuckled. "I can call you _Mrs. Cullen _now and the whole world will know that you're mine."

"And that you're mine." I gripped his lapel possessively and gave him a look.

"Always." He murmured, leaning down to kiss me.

**~*~*~*~*~*~*~SOR~*~*~*~*~*~*~**

"Where are we going?" I asked for the hundredth time, nearly bouncing up and down in my seat.

Maybe that large double-shot mocha latte I had before we got on the jet was a little too much.

"I am not telling you anything yet. You'll just have to find out when we get there." He snickered, clearly enjoying dangling this over my head.

"I hate you." I pouted childishly, but I wanted to know _so bad_.

"Well that's going to make this one short marriage. I think we beat Britney Spears's record." Edward mused.

I poked him in the ribs, amused despite my frustration.

"I love you." He murmured in my ear, nuzzling and kissing my neck.

"I love you, too." I said, sighing and leaning into his lips.

"I knew you didn't hate me." He breathed out, the warmth tickling my skin.

"I only hate you when you won't tell me where were going for our honeymoon." I laughed lightly.

"My, my… it's true what they say, people do change after they get married." Edward teased.

I smacked his chest playfully.

"Alright. It's not anywhere in America." He finally relented and gave me a hint.

"That leaves three quarters of the world." I said.

Edward shrugged.

"Is it Europe?" I gave a guess.

"Nope." Edward quipped.

"Is it an island?" I asked again.

"Not really..." He shook his head.

"Are you taking me to Narnia?" I asked, narrowing my eyes at him jokingly.

Edward laughed. "That would be awesome if it were possible."

"Rio?" I took another guess.

"I'm not going to take you someplace we can go regularly." He told me.

I groaned, frustrated and hit the back of my head against the padded leather seat.

"Don't worry, we'll be there in another hour." Edward assured, taking my hand and bringing it up to his lips and kissing the back.

"It's driving me crazy." I said.

"It's a surprise."

"I don't like surprises." I said, resting my head on his shoulder.

"You'll have to get used to them, I love surprising you." He told me softly.

"I think it's just because I'm on a caffeine high." I mumbled.

"No more caffeine for you… for the rest of your life." He added on with a chuckle. "You turn into Alice and it scares me."

I stuck my tongue out at him and he raised an eyebrow.

"You better watch out, if I wasn't such a gentleman, I'd be trying to get you to do a few more productive things with that tongue." Edward smirked.

I snorted a bit unladylike. "A gentleman?"

"Yes." He looked a little offended. "If I wasn't, we'd be joining the mile high club right about now."

I paused at that, not sure if he was teasing or not.

The mile high club.

A _very _interesting idea, but not on the first night of our honeymoon.

"Maybe you could… act ungentlemanly on our flight back." I said softly, turning from teasing to seductive.

Edward's face immediately turned serious as he looked down at me, desire clear in his bright green eyes.

"I think that can be arranged." He whispered a little huskily.

"_Mr. Cullen, we'll be landing in about ten minutes_." The pilot came over the speaker system.

Edward grumbled under his breath, but pushed a button and thanked the pilot.

"Can I see?" I asked, the caffeine making a reappearance as I sat up straighter and motioned toward the window.

"Go ahead, but I don't think you'll be able to tell much from the air." Edward said.

He was right.

As I looked out the window, all I could see was green. Green trees, green valleys, a few houses here and there.

"Are we in the freaking Shire?" I asked with a frown.

"We aren't in any mythical place." Edward laughed.

A few minutes later, the jet landed and Edward and I were making our way into the small airport. I looked around for any signs about where we were as we gathered our bags, but I couldn't find anything defining. A sleek black car was waiting for us outside the airport, an attendant loading our bags into the trunk.

As we were driving down the road, I saw the first thing that told me what country we were in.

_Dublin_.

We were in Ireland.

Then I immediately thought back to our conversation on the jet and him telling me we weren't going to Europe.

"Ireland is a part of Europe." I called him out on his little lie, tilting my head to the side as I looked up at him.

"Technically, you asked if it was _in Europe_, not if it was a European country." Edward grinned. "And you know, Southern Ireland is it's own separate Republic, so still not quite a part of Europe."

"That's just semantics." I said.

"Still didn't count." He quipped.

I made a frustrated sound down in my throat, but couldn't help but smile and wrap my arms around one of his.

"Do you like it?" Edward asked, sounding nervous for the first time since we got married.

"Of course I do! I love it. Ireland is on my list of places to see, I love that I get to spend my honeymoon here. It's beautiful, and quiet - just what we need right now." I told him.

"I'm so happy you like it, I was worried about finding someplace good to go." He laughed nervously. "We spend all of our time on an island, so I couldn't take you anywhere typical of a normal honeymoon. Then Alice suggested that I stop thinking about what the usual honeymoon is and start thinking about places we don't normally go. So, instead of some fancy tropical island, I went in the opposite direction."

Just then, Edward stopped the car and I looked out the window.

It looked like something out of _Homes and Gardens_.

A stone cottage sat about twenty yards back from the little gravel road we'd been driving on. It looked a little bigger than the average cottage, but still smaller than every other house the Cullen's had. Cute little circular windows were on the front of the house, a small chimney was on the right side of the house, with green vines with bright red flowers growing up the side.

All around the cottage was green grass and flowers, a stone walkway leading up to the mahogany door.

It was beautiful and simple and absolutely perfect.

"Edward…" I was at a loss for words.

"You like it?" He asked, hint of worry in his voice. After I didn't say anything, he really started to worry. "If you don't, we can work something else out."

"Shut up." I blurted out. "Please." I added on quickly.

"So… is that a shut up because _yes I like it_, or a shut up because _I can't believe you brought me here and hate me_?" Edward asked carefully.

"Shut up because I love it and I'm still trying to take it all in." I said, leaning across the consol to kiss him.

"Let's go see the inside." He pulled away, getting out of the car and coming around my side to open my door for me.

As we approached the cottage, Edward lifted me up in his arms, making me shriek and giggle.

"You're only supposed to carry me through the threshold of _our house_." I giggled.

"This is going to be our house for the next two weeks, so I say it counts." He said, pecking me on the nose with his lips.

Edward carried me through the door with a grand motion, I couldn't stop grinning.

The inside of the cottage was beautiful, with an earthy, rustic look to it. Stone walls, dark wood furniture, comfy, overstuffed couch and chairs. There was a large stone fireplace in the living room, taking up a better part of the far wall.

I hadn't had a fireplace in a house since I was seven. When Renee and Charlie were still together and we lived in Forks, a fireplace in your house was just as common as a bathroom. But when they split up and Renee took me to Phoenix with her, it was like no one had ever even heard of a fireplace.

I missed the warmth a fireplace brought. I remember when I was little and the power would go out during a bad storm, Charlie would get the fire roaring and Renee would sit down with me in front of it and read me a story. Or sometimes when we felt like it we would just turn all the lights off and Renee would make hot chocolate and cookies.

They were some of the few happier childhood memories I had.

"What do you think?" Edward's voice startled me a little. I turned my head to look at him and hugged him tightly around the neck, burying my face in his hard shoulder.

"It's perfect." I answered softly. "Now, would you show me the bedroom?"

Edward smirked and without wasting another second carried me through the cottage. There was only one bedroom, and even that was small compared to what I'd become used to over the past year, but I didn't care.

Really, what would we need the bedroom for other than the bed?

And that was definitely large.

A king size bed with pillows piled high and a warm looking quilted blanket sat waiting for us. Edward playfully tossed me onto the bed, watching me bounce a couple times and settle against the pillows.

"I'll be right back, I need to grab our bags." He leaned down to kiss me.

I was reluctant to let him go, but I needed my suitcase to change into what I had planned for tonight.

Edward was only gone for about thirty seconds, none too carefully setting our bags beside the table across the room.

Instantly he was back in bed with me, crawling over me until his lips found mine, carefully settling his weight on me.

I had missed this.

To be able to lay in bed and kiss and touch each other without worrying about having to stop before things got too far.

Edward groaned softly, his lips tracing down my jaw, his tongue peaking out to caress the skin down my neck.

I whimpered, my fingers tightening their hold on his shirt.

_I remember something about a sexy outfit I packed…_

But then it flew out of my mind as his teeth nibbled around my ear.

I didn't care about fancy lingerie or trying to seduce Edward, it was quite obvious neither of us were having problems in that area.

We were both just desperate to get to each other.

Edward flipped us over, straddling his waist, I began to work on undoing the buttons on his shirt. His hands ran over my hips and waist as I worked, reaching up to run his fingers through my hair and slowly trailing them down between my breasts.

I nearly ripped his shirt apart when I finished with the buttons, working it down his arms as he leaned up to help, tossing across the room. His chest was warm and muscled, tanned from our days laying on the beach. I loved to run my hands over his abs, feeling the muscles clench underneath my touch.

Edward lay beneath me, letting me look and feel to my hearts content.

"Enjoying yourself?" He smirked up at me.

"Very much." I leaned down to kiss him.

Edward made quick work of my own shirt, throwing it away to join his, as well as my bra.

He gripped my waist and leaned forward, kissing down my chest and between my breasts.

"I missed doing this so much." Edward groaned between kisses.

I switched between breathless giggles and little moans when he'd nip or suck someplace sensitive.

"Never again. Like never." He said, pausing in his actions. "Even if in thirty years we renew our vows or something, none of this not having sex for weeks. It kills me. And when I'm nearly sixty you don't want to push me closer to death."

I laughed hysterically into his shoulder, imaging Edward and I having sex in our fifties and sixties. That was something I never wanted to imagine again for a very long time.

"I promise; I will never withhold sex again. But I reserve the right to use it as a tool to punish you if you fuck up." I snickered.

"If I fuck up, do anything you want, because I'll deserve it." He told me.

"I'll remind you of that when you're whining about sleeping on the couch." I giggled.

Edward kissed me soundly, flipping us back over and I sunk into the bed, his lips and hands skimming over my body.

His pants were the next to go, both of us working together awkwardly to get them off so he didn't have to stop kissing me. I was about to have him flip us over again so I could work out of mine, but his fingers were already undoing the button and zipper, wiggling them down past my hips.

He pulled away to sit between my legs on his heels, taking my jeans and underwear off in one smooth motion, leaving me completely naked in front of him for the first time in weeks.

Edward's hands went to my calves, squeezing gently here and there as they glided up my legs. His mouth followed, lips and tongue caressing my skin.

I was impatient, waiting for him to reach the place we both knew he was heading.

His tongue skimmed up my inner thigh and I held my breath, waiting for it, but he skipped up to kiss my hipbone.

"Edward!" I finally growled.

He had the nerve to laugh and I was so close to kicking him in the junk when he pulled my thigh over his shoulder, his lips grazing against my pussy. His laughter quickly turned to a little moan as I dug my fingers into his hair.

I gasped as his tongue dipped into me, circling around my clit a few times before sliding lower and back up again.

"Edward!" I whimpered, my frustration turning to pure pleasure, my legs tensing on his shoulders.

He moaned into me, the vibrations making me shudder and my fingers in his hair flex.

I flung one hand into the pillow next to my head, gripping it so tightly I was half afraid it would rip. Edward played my body like a finely honed instrument, making me arch and moan and pant at the littlest movements of his tongue.

"_Edward!_ Oh…" I gasped at one particular swirl around my clit.

Then suddenly two of his long fingers were there, softly slipping into me and making me moan. I could feel that longed for tightening in my lower stomach as he worked in and out of me, my thighs tensing on his shoulders, my heels digging into his back.

"I… I'm…" I tried to speak, but clearly failed.

It was mere moments later that the tightening turned into an explosion. I cried out as my body clenched every muscle, my back arching of the bed softly.

I felt Edward gentle his tongue against me, his fingers slowing down in their intensity, but never stopping as I relaxed back onto the bed. My fingers flexed in his hair, and I could hear that I was still making soft whimpers.

Edward slowly pulled away from me, only to slide his body up along mine until we were face to face.

"I can't believe I forgot how fucking beautiful that is." He said quietly.

"What?" I asked, still a little dazed.

"How you look when you cum." He murmured huskily, brushing his lips along my jaw.

I blushed a little, but grinned, wrapping my hands around his back and digging my fingertips into his warm skin.

I half expected him to dive in, so to speak, but was surprised when instead of settling himself between my legs, he pulled away a little and effortlessly rolled me over so I was resting on my stomach. I frowned, not knowing what he was doing, but was quickly reassured when I felt his lips between my shoulder blades.

Edward never once pulled his mouth from me, his fingers and lips doing all the talking necessary. I shivered every time he kissed down my spine, bite my lip when his fingers would brush across my rib cage. He ventured lower, kissing the little dimples above my ass that he said he loved. My breath caught and I smiled when he playfully nipped at my cheeks, squirming a little.

Then the playfulness was gone as quickly as it came, his tongue peaking out to trail across the back of my thigh. I let a little moan through my lips as he came temptingly close to where I was still hot and wet for him.

"Edward… _now_." I whimpered, unable to take it any longer.

I was hot and achy all over and all I wanted was him inside me.

At my words, he was flipping me around again and lowering himself to cover my body. I could feel his cock hard against my thigh and I knew he was just as desperate as me. I wrapped myself around him, my arms around his neck and my legs around his waist. Edward shifted slightly and I could feel his cock against me, hard and demanding. I'd missed this so much.

I reached down between us, grasping him in my hand and stroking up and down a few times, rubbing my thumb along the head.

"Fuck…" He growled lowly into my shoulder.

"Please." I whispered.

"I thought I once told you that you never had to beg." He smirked, one of his hands removing mine from him and the other planting firmly on the bed beside my head, and then he was pressing into me.

_Never, ever again will I willingly choose to go without sex._

I was filled to the point where it felt like I couldn't breath, sparks of pleasure racing through my body, Edward above me whispering words in my ear and his hands ghosting along my skin.

I'd been denying myself heaven on earth for the past month.

"So good… so good…" Edward was panting, shaking with the effort to not start thrusting into me wildly.

I was grateful for the effort.

Sure, it felt absolutely fucking mind blowing, but I'd been a month without sex and I'd always been a little tight around him anyway. We both knew I'd need a minute to adjust.

"Okay?" His voice was stained as he asked me, his eyes searching my face carefully.

"Perfect." I whispered up at him, my lips pressing against his reassuringly.

He smiled a little as I pulled away, brushing my hair back behind my ear. I felt him slowly pulling back, the delicious pressure easing away and making me tighten my arms around him to bring him back.

Edward dipped down, his warm lips wrapping around my nipple as he thrust into me. Hands and lips were everywhere, digging into skin, kissing everything we could reach between pants and moans.

He thrust into me sharply, picking up the pace and upping the pleasure.

"Edward!" I gasped, throwing my head back into the pillow.

"That's it, angel." He panted into my shoulder, showing no mercy in his thrusts now. I was practically moving up the bed every time he buried himself in me, but all I did was writhe and moan and dig my heels into his ass.

"Fuck!" Edward growled. "So amazing… fuckin' perfect… love you so much…"

I wanted to tell him all of those things and more; how he filled me up and made me want to cling to him for the rest of our lives, that his sweaty, hard body moving above me was completely intoxicating, but I had lost my ability to speak.

Then he was moving us. Gliding his arms around to my back, he sat back on his heels, still deep inside me, pulling me up with him so I was sitting on his thighs and had to balance myself with my arms around his neck, pressing us chest to chest.

Edwards' left hand came up to stroke my face, tracing my eyebrows, cheekbones, along my lips, and down my jaw. His right gripped my ass to help steady me, using it as leverage to help push me up and lower me down on his cock.

This new position also changed the angle, so now not only was he hitting that little spot inside me that made me want to scream, but his hips rubbed against my clit at every movement into me.

That turned out to be exactly what I needed.

"Come on angel, I can feel it…" Edward whispered roughly. "I know you're about to cum… just let it go, let me feel that little pussy tighten around me."

_Oh, God._

The words killed me.

Crying out hoarsely, my nails dug into the skin of his shoulders and my legs clenched around his waist. Waves of heat exploded through me and I swear to God I saw little white spots behind my eyelids.

I was vaguely aware of Edward groaning my name and shuddering against me, his hands squeezing my ass tightly and clenching my hair between his fingers.

We moved against each other, trying to draw out the sensations for _just a moment longer_.

My entire body was like jello, numb from my lips to my toes, but Edward must have had better control, because he was lowering us back onto the bed slowly, cradling my body as he collapsed on his back, holding me to lay sprawled across his chest.

"I love you so much, Bella." He said slightly breathless, his hands rubbing lazily up and down my back.

"I love you too… more than anything." I responded softly, nuzzling my face into the curve of his shoulder and neck.

I wanted to stay awake for round two… and three… and maybe four… but Edward's arms around me and the soft, snuggly blankets I was surrounded by made it impossible to fight the sleep washing over me.

**~*~*~*~*~*~SOR~*~*~*~*~*~**

The first week of our honeymoon went by in a haze of sex, eating in bed, watching old movies, and more sex. By the beginning of the second week, we decided that it might be good to actually get out and see some of the sights, maybe go into town and shop a little, hit a pub or two.

We had fun, spending a couple nights down at a local pub called _Flanagan's_ just sitting in one of the homey booths, drinking ale and watching the people around us.

It was especially funny when a young Irish boy came up to me while Edward was ordering us drinks at the bar, asking me in an adorable accent if I'd like to grab a pint and some chips and maybe go back to his place.

Well… it was funny to me.

Edward didn't agree.

After that we stayed mostly in our little cottage, immersing back into our little bubble. I didn't mind a damn bit.

"I don't want to go back this afternoon." Edward whined childishly, kissing down my neck with those pouty lips of his.

I tried to hide my grin by biting my lip, but he wasn't fooled.

We'd just finished breakfast and were snuggled together on the overstuffed couch, me turned sideways with my back against the arm, my legs draped across Edward's lap. He was leaning into me, his arm curved around my back to help bring me closer to him.

"We'll have to go home eventually…" I said, my voice hitching when he nipped at the sensitive spot beneath my ear.

"You wanna bet?" He murmured, taking my earlobe between his teeth.

I tried to think of some witty comeback or a reasonable excuse as to why we would have to back to the island sooner or later, but frankly, with his teeth nibbling and his hands exploring, I didn't really give a damn at the moment.

I sighed we his free hand slipped into my sleep shorts, and then two fingers were buried in my pussy.

"I need to… p-pack." I stuttered out.

_Shut the fuck up, Bella! Don't turn down another orgasm from your gorgeous husband!_

"I just wanna see you cum one last time on this couch." He whispered deeply, kissing down my collarbone and into my cleavage.

Unf. Whatever you want.

"Will you do that for me?" He asked semi-rhetorically, his fingers slowly pumping in and out.

I let loose a whimper and lolled my head back to rest on his forearm, which he took as all the confirmation he needed.

I don't think I'd ever get tired of orgasms by Edward.

**~*~*~*~*~*~SOR~*~*~*~*~*~**

"It's not like we're being sentenced to prison or something!" I chuckled as I looked at Edward's pouty form beside me. His arms were crossed over his chest, he was slumped down a little in the seat, and I swear he'd jutted his bottom lip out a couple times.

I married a six year old.

"But I won't have you all to myself anymore!" Edward exclaimed. "We'll always have people just a few hundred yards away, popping in whenever they want. And you know Emmett will be on us for at least a week. I can hear the teasing and the jokes now."

I leaned to the side a little so my cheek was now resting against his shoulder as I peered up at him innocently.

"Well then, I suppose you'll have to make me scream loud enough to give them a fair warning." I said sweetly, twirling my finger down his bicep.

"Oh you little-" He started to say in a growl, but was rudely interrupted - in my opinion - by the pilot of our jet telling us that we were ten minutes from the Altamira Airport.

It was all too soon that we were walking through the crowded airport to our car. A valet loaded our few bags into the trunk and we were on our way.

It felt odd being back in Brazil. Two weeks of chilly, gray, lazy weather had just started to grow on me. I could sit in one of the window seats with a book and enjoy the clouds and the light mist of rain that almost always appeared in the morning. Now here in Brazil it was warm, not a cloud in sight, the sun beating down on us almost felt like the sauna back in Vegas.

Edward seemed to understand, because he took my hand in his and rubbed his thumb along the back.

"We can go back whenever we want. The cottage is ours… I bought it just for us." He told me.

"No… it'll just take a bit of readjusting to the weather, that's all. I'm not upset that we're home." I clarified my feelings to him.

"I love hearing you call this home." He admitted softly.

"That's what it is." I said simply.

**~*~*~*~*~*~SOR~*~*~*~*~*~**

"Did you have fun?"

"I hear Ireland's beautiful this time of year… all lush and green."

"How many rooms will need sanitizing? I've seen what you two can do…"

That last one was from Emmett, to which Rose promptly turned to smack him on the arm.

Edward and I laughed through, completely overwhelmed by the curious group who'd greeted us at the docks on the island.

At least they'd let us get inside and sit down before really pestering us.

"All of them, Em." Edward snickered at his brother, enjoying the way Emmett shuddered.

"And Ireland was very beautiful." I said, trying to get off the subject of us defiling the cottage.

Rose and Alice focused on me, listening as I told them about the little village about a mile away from our cottage, the pub Edward and I had enjoyed many nights, how Edward got jealous of all the guys and thinking I liked their accents.

They laughed with me, and Rose teased Emmett about maybe finding a nice Irish boy herself.

"Alright, time to give little Bella up for a couple hours." Rose said in a sing song voice, grabbing my hand to no doubt take me somewhere that we could gossip about the dirtier things of my honeymoon.

"No one is taking her anywhere!" Edward nearly yelled, squeezing me into a tight hug.

"Come on, Edward! You've had her for two weeks, let her go for two hours! She's our sister now, ya now." Rose growled, sounding a little superior.

I didn't try to take either one's side, just giggled hysterically into Edward's chest as they bickered back and forth.

Yes… this had been my home since that very first morning I woke up in Edward's room, to him fighting with Rose.

Some things never change.

* * *

**Oh my gosh guys, this has been a long and fun journey with all of you and this story. I want to thank all of you for sticking with me, leaving me all those wonderful reviews, and loving what I write. **

**I'm so sad to leave you guys, I might write a future take chapter if I start to get too many feels.**

***Bella's wedding dress can be found on my tumblr, the link can be found on my profile page.**


End file.
